


No strings attached... right?

by katychan666



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Friends With Benefits, M/M, To lovers?, wedding planner!magnus
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-30
Updated: 2020-08-02
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:01:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 45
Words: 169,893
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23930485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katychan666/pseuds/katychan666
Summary: Alec has just broken up and is drowning his sorrows at his brother's wedding. He hates weddings and apparently Jace's wedding planner, Magnus, does as well. Alec isn't the only one who suffers from a broken heart, Magnus' belief on true love has been tainted as well. One thing leads to the other and they end up hooking, but it's okay because there's no strings attached... right?Sequel to the story can be found here:Complete
Relationships: Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood
Comments: 745
Kudos: 692





	1. Chapter 1

Alec hated weddings, even the wedding of his own brother. It was the day that his brother has just gotten married and Alec was completely miserable. He was the only one that was single on the wedding and if that wasn’t bad enough, his ex decided to show up. Not really _show up,_ because he was invited - he was Jace’s friend too and when Jace had invited Alec to the wedding, he was still dating the guy. But things soon went downhill from there and Alec was sitting by the bar and he was just glaring at everyone on the dance floor. Happy couples, kissing, having a good time. _He hated all of them._ They were all… happy. And he was miserable. 

Alec’s ex was there somewhere in the middle of the crowd, but he didn’t really want to see him. Jace had told Alec that he was going to uninvite him, but Alec thought that it would be unfair, so he insisted that it was completely okay because he claimed that he was over it. At least that was what he thought, but as soon as the bastard showed his face there and was all happy with someone else it made Alec’s blood boil with anger and despair. And he looked good, while Alec looked like a mess, but at this point he didn’t even really care, drinking down everything that he got his hands on and he was just getting started. He was going to drown his sorrows. And he was never going to another wedding. Ever. It was all just… lies. Biting on his lip, he just took in a deep breath and then he sighed sadly. 

‘’Keep them coming,’’ said Alec to the bartender, and his eyes darkened when he managed to see his ex after all. He quickly ducked his head down, hoping that he wasn’t going to get seen. Running into him and his new boyfriend was something that he didn’t really want to do. Yes, he was there, but he was completely ignoring his existence and he sighed again and looked to the glass that was empty again. Just where did the drink go? It was just handed to him and now it was just… _poof. Gone._ Alec hiccuped and then leaned back against the chair.

Alec pretended that he was okay before. He was Jace’s best man after all and he didn’t want to make a scene about it. But now that everyone was having a great time and had somehow abandoned Alec, he was alone to deal all of those feelings of sadness and he didn’t like it. Grumbling, he took another shot of whiskey and then nodded. Alcohol was his best friend at the moment and he just sadly glanced at the empty glass. But just like his ex, that kept leaving him over and over again. It was good that there was a lot more from where that came from. 

Alec hated weddings. That was the only thing that was going on in his mind - he hated everything about them. All of those empty words of _happily ever after._ Happily ever after? Yeah, right, as if that really happened. It was only in the movies, not in reality. True love didn’t exist and Alec got more than one proof for it. His heart kept getting broken over and over again and he didn’t even understand what was the point in trying. He was happy for his brother and sister, of course he was. Both of them had someone very special and Alec liked their significant others, but personally, he had completely given up on love. Because it didn’t exist!

‘’I fucking hate weddings,’’ said someone on his right and he quickly glanced over to the side and then narrowed his eyes. His eyes were unfocused and it took him a little while, but he finally recognised who was the one that had just sat down next to him. _It was Jace’s and Clary’s wedding planner!_ Magnus Bane. He was very famous and because Jace only wanted the best for Clary, they decided to hire him even if he cost the fortune. He really did an amazing job, Alec couldn’t deny it even if he hated weddings. Still, how could a wedding planner hate weddings? Alec was very confused, but at the same time he was also very behind that way on thinking because all weddings made him… _ugh._ ‘’I’ll have what he’s having,’’ said Magnus and pointed to Alec’s glass of whiskey and he then sighed. 

Magnus Bane, the wedding planner, was in a terrible mood. He has met Alec a few times - he didn’t know much about him, he just knew that he was Jace’s brother and his best man for the wedding. He knew that Jace’s brother was incredibly hot, but the last time that they really spoke, he was also _not_ single, so Magnus kind of gave up. _Because of course all the good ones were taken!_ It wasn’t really fair. Magnus was doomed for the life of loneliness - for a wedding planner, his love life was kind of a joke.

Everyone, every single one of his clients thought that he had this perfect _love life._ That he was happily married, but that was so not true. He was sailing the forever alone boat and it was kind of hilarious, to the point of it being all sad that he was a wedding planner. He didn’t start his career alone, he started it with his now very ex wife, Camille. Yes, he has been married before and for the first few months of marriage it was really picture perfect. They were happily married, Magnus really thought that he found _the one._ He thought that he’d get to spend his happily ever after with Camille and being so blindly alone, he wanted to share this kind of happiness with the others. He had always loved planning parties, so changing his life around and becoming a wedding planner seemed like the way to go.

But, things soon turned south and now he restended his job, but it was a good salary and he kept pushing it solely for the money. On one hand it kind of felt like he was lying to his clients, because he was promising them a wedding that was going to be out of this world, and it was. He was very good at what he did, but it felt wrong. He didn’t…. _he didn’t feel the same joy as back then._ Now it felt like he was selling lies and not true happiness. Going through the divorce really opened his eyes and he wasn’t as naive and blind as he once was - true love, something that he never really believed in. At least not anymore. That was taken away from him. 

After his job there was done, the ceremony was over and now all that there was left was partying is when Magnus decided that it was going to be more than a perfect moment to get drunk. As hell. He wanted to get as drunk as it was possible and it seemed that he had some company, because Alec was chugging those whiskeys down like a champ and Alec just gave him an amused chuckle - that was kind of pessimistic for a wedding planner, wasn’t it? To hate weddings.

‘’A wedding planner hating weddings?’’ asked Alec, his speech very slurred and it was very apparent that he had been there for a while now. ‘’I mean I totally support you, but that’s kind of sad, isn’t it?’’ he asked and Magnus just shrugged. ‘’But-but, it’s true, weddings are fucking the worst. Hate them all,’’ said Alec, hiccuping again and he then glanced over at his glass that was again empty. ‘’Truly the worst,’’ he said and Magnus arched his brow. _Really? Because back then Alec seemed happy with-_

‘’I don’t think you boyfriend would be too pleased to hear that, huh?’’ asked Magnus and Alec laughed bitterly - which boyfriend was Magnus talking about exactly? The bitterness behind his laughter told Magnus that maybe he shouldn’t have said that - he could tell that there was something that Alec was very pissed about.

‘’Exactly which boyfriend?’’ asked Alec and then continued laughing. Maybe laughter was going to erase the pain that he felt in his heart, but not really and he just took in a deep breath. ‘’Oh, you meant the one that cheated on me, then broke my heart, stepped all over it and then set it on fire?’’ asked Alec and then glanced over at the dance floor and then quickly looked away. Ah, so they weren’t together anymore. Magnus felt like a dick to assume that- ‘’That, boyfriend, yes, now my _ex-_ boyfriend,’’ said Alec and then just shook his head. ‘’Let’s just say that it didn’t work out,’’ he said and Magnus pressed his lips together. Yep, he needed to say something!

But first things first - he emptied two shots of whiskey and already felt in a much better mood. He glanced at Alec, who was now just talking something under his breath, Magnus then realising that it was Alec bitching about his ex and he bit his lip. ‘’Sorry, I didn’t mean no harm,’’ he said and then bit his lip.

‘’That’s okay,’’ said Alec and brushed it off. It wasn’t but- ‘’So, what’s your story? How come you hate weddings?’’ asked Alec and Magnus turned around and didn’t say much. ‘’Hey, you got to hear about my boyfriend, so you should tell me things too,’’ said Alec. He wasn’t so pushy usually, but the alcohol in his untied his tongue and he just shook his head. ‘’Aren’t you supposed to be into this whole crap? Happily ever after? I thought that you were happily married with-’’

‘’Ah, was,’’ said Magnus, emptied another glass and gritted his teeth. ‘’Then she broke my heart, stepped all over it and set it on fire,’’ said Magnus and glanced over at Alec and they could recognise each other’s pain. 

Alec blinked a few times and they he glanced over at the bar and took two glasses, handed one to Magnus, who arched his brow. Alec had a lot more than him already, but- ‘’To us,’’ said Alec and Magnus took the glass that Alec handed to him and he just laughed. ‘’Because we’re better than _all_ of them,’’ he said, showing to the ones dancing. ‘’Say it with me - weddings suck,’’ said Alec and Magnus nodded, clinking his glass against Alec’s. 

‘’I’ll drink to that,’’ he said, emptying his glass and Alec did the same. 

* * *

‘’And-and then he threw me out of our apartment,’’ complained Alec, still talking about his ex boyfriend. It was an hour or so later and he and Magnus were still drinking together, but they changed locations. They took a bottle of champagne and walked outside because all of those romantic songs were getting on their nerves and now they were just complaining to each other about their exes and to be honest it was kind of… _nice._ Talking to a stranger was sometimes easier than someone you truly knew. 

‘’H-he’s an idiot,’’ said Magnus and shook his head. His eyes were travelling around, his head feeling a little bit fuzzy and he then signed. ‘’He didn’t appreciate you, he-he doesn’t.... karma will get it,’’ said Magnus, not really knowing where he was going with it, but Alec nodded in agreement. At least he hoped that karma was going to bite him on the ass! ‘’You’ll meet someone better,’’ said Magnus and Alec scoffed.

‘’I don’t need anyone,’’ said Alec. ‘’I’ll be single for the rest of my life, I don’t care,’’ said Alec and then took a sip of the champagne. Magnus nodded and then took the champagne bottle from Alec’s hands and titled it as well, taking a big sip and then he sighed happily. Ah, that was such a nice feeling!

‘’Me too,’’ said Magnus. ‘’Never falling in love, ever again-’’

‘’Love doesn’t exist,’’ said Alec and Magnus nodded.

‘’Good point,’’ said Magnus. ‘’From now on - it’s just me,’’ said Magnus and Alec nodded. ‘’And even if I hook up with someone - no feelings attached,’’ he said, deciding that he was a changed man. _Never was he going through something like that again, Alec made a good point and he was going to listen to him._ He raised a good point. ‘’And to think that she replaced me with someone that ugly,’’ said Magnus and Alec glanced at Magnus and shook his head. Yeah, what the fuck?!

‘’She downgraded,’’ said Alec.

‘’Exactly!’’ said Magnus.

‘’Because you’re like a ten,’’ said Alec and then took the champagne from Magnus. He needed more and Magnus laughed. ‘’No, I mean it, you-you’re like fucking hot,’’ said Alec and shook his head. ‘’Totally my type,’’ he then carried on. Again, the alcohol untied his tongue _a lot._ And he didn’t hold back from telling Magnus just how hot he found him. It wasn’t anything that _big._

‘’Really?’’ asked Magnus and laughed drunkenly. ‘’That’s so crazy because you are, fuck, so my type as well,’’ said Magnus and then shook his head. Magnus’ eyes were travelling up and down Alec and he gulped. ‘’I was so disappointed when I learned you had a boyfriend, because if you didn’t at the time, I would totally put the moves on you,’’ he said and winked. Alec perked up and then swallowed thickly. _Really?!_

‘’Lucky for me I don’t have a boyfriend anymore, so you may put all the moves on me that you want,’’ said Alec and then waggled his eyebrows. Magnus giggled and then leaned closer to Alec, gulping and Alec shuddered as well. ‘’I mean it,’’ said Alec firmly and Magnus just glanced up and down. _Fuck, he wanted to climb Alec like a tree ever since meeting him!_ But they… it would be just physical, right? Because Magnus _really_ wasn’t in for anything serious. And from the looks of it neither was Alec - so it would be perfect, no?

‘’No feelings attached, just fun,’’ said Magnus, Alec quickly nodded.

‘’Of course,’’ said Alec and then winked. ‘’Friends with benefits, nothing more,’’ suggested Alec and Magnus hummed happily, leaning closer to Alec and he placed his hand on top of his chest and his fingers travelled over to the suspenders. They looked sinful on Alec and he gulped, pulling on them. 

‘’Let’s test first how compatible we are?’’ asked Magnus and Alec just nodded and leaned in, placing a little kiss on top of Magnus’ lips and then arched a brow. Magnus grinned and then straightened himself up a little bit. ‘’I’ll need more than just a little peck,’’ teased him Magnus and Alec gulped.

‘’Oh, I’m so fucking game,’’ said Alec, breathing out and Magnus then grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him in for a kiss, crushing their lips together hungrily and Alec moaned into the kiss because the way Magnus moved his lips against his felt so amazing. Alec shuddered softly when he felt Magnus’ fingers in his hair, gently tugging on it and he didn’t shy away either, dragging his tongue over Magnus’ lower lip, the other quickly accepting him in and Alec growled softly. _Damn, they fit amazing._

Magnus’ head was spinning, either from the alcohol or the kiss, but he was getting very high on Alec’s kisses and he grinned, pulling back just a little bit and he then wanted to try something. He leaned in, parting his lips and then he gently sank his teeth into Alec’s lower lip and then gently sucked on it, making Alec groan and he let out an impatient moan because he wanted more. They were definitely more than compatible. 

‘’I think we fit pretty good,’’ said Magnus, winking.

‘’Fuck, yes,’’ said Alec and kissed Magnus again, with such force that they landed on the floor, Alec lying on top of Magnus, but neither of them cared too much, the kisses again getting deeper and hungrier, both of them groaning and moaning against each other. Alec’s body felt hot and hard against Magnus’, Magnus loving the way Alec was holding him by his neck, gently, yet firmly, having him pinned down just like he wanted and Magnus was getting annoyed by the layers of clothing that were between them. He untucked Alec’s shirt from his pants and sighed happily when he slipped his fingers under it. Alec gasped and then looked down at Magnus.

He looked so damn good. His cheeks slightly red and he was already pulling him down for more and Alec just… _that look in his eyes._ It's been a while since someone has looked at him like that. _Lustful. Hungry._ Alec felt his cock growing in his pants and he cursed, leaning down and he was kissing Magnus again. He needed more, Magnus kept him going in for more he pressed down, laying in between Magnus' legs and the other chuckled when he felt how _hard_ Alec was all ready for him. Someone was pent up and fuck - so was he! Magnus shuddered, his brain mush and he just-

"Fuck me,’’ whined Magnus. He didn’t ask, Magnus _begged_ and Alec gasped. His cock grew rock hard when he heard Magnus’ little plead, sounding almost like a sob and he gritted his teeth. _He lived pretty far, they couldn’t-_ Maybe they could hire a hotel room or- 

‘’I’ll be fucking you for hours, Magnus,’’ promised him Alec and Magnus rocked his hips as well, showing Alexander just how much he needed him and Alec shuddered. That promise sounded so yummy and Magnus was just- ‘’Just, I live far and-’’ muttered Alec and Magnus gave him a little giggle.

‘’I live pretty close, I’ll call us an Uber,’’ said Magnus and Alec quickly nodded. ‘’I hope you’re a man of your words,’’ he said, winking and Alec’s throat got even tighter and drier. _Fuck, yes!_

* * *

‘’Oh, fuck, fuck, Alec, I’m ready, please,’’ groaned Magnus, moaning against his pillow. Alec has been prepping him for far too long and he bit his lip. He needed to feel Alec in him _right now._ It took them a while to finally reach Magnus’ place, them ripping clothes off of each other practically as soon as Magnus locked the door. They couldn’t keep their hands off of each other, not even in the Uber, both of them stumbling through the loft to Magnus’ apartment and now Magnus finally had Alec where he wanted. Behind him, but he was taking too-

Alec was enjoying this far too much. Three fingers buried inside of Magnus, he grinned and then crooked them inside of Magnus, who arched his back and he bit his lip. He was drooling, Magnus was so fucking hot. This was the best decision he had ever done and he just bit his lip. His head felt fuzzy from the alcohol, but he managed to sober up a little bit. It took them more than an hour to come back to Magnus’ place, feeling like he was about to burst. His cock was hot and heavy and Magnus couldn’t wait to finally feel Alec _inside._ He had gotten a closer look before when he was blowing him in the living room and he was desperate for it.

‘’Patience,’’ said Alec and gave Magnus a teasing slap on his ass.

‘’You’ve been playing with my ass for fifteen minutes, fuck me already,’’ complained Magnus and looked around, his eyes glaring Alec. Alec liked how Magnus didn’t shy away from telling him what he wanted and Alec decided to finally took pity on his and he leaned to the side, reaching for the condom. He ripped it open with his teeth and grinned when he saw Magnus watching him. He liked those dark and hungry eyes looking over him and he grinned as he rolled the condom down his length and then pulled Magnus’ cheeks apart, lining his cock with his entrance, but he pushed only the tip inside and Magnus whined again.

‘’You little shit,’’ said Magnus and grabbed the sheet.

‘’You love it when I tease you,’’ said Alec and Magnus couldn’t really deny. Alec grabbed the base of his cock and then gave himself a few teasing pumps, lubing himself up before he finally decided that he couldn’t wait much longer either. Magnus shuddered and he braced himself. Alec’s cock was thick and long, he was just- ‘’I’ll go slow,’’ promised Alec and Magnus nodded, urging Alec to keep going and he smiled when he finally felt the familiar stretch, feeling Alec slowly pushing himself inside, sliding through the first ring of muscles and he took in another deep breath. Alec pushed out a little bit and then back inside, going slow.

Alec dropped his hand beneath Magnus, wrapping his fingers around Magnus’ cock, jerking him off gently and Magnus was a whimpering mess. A few moments later, he was already back to begs and pleads because he wanted Alec to fuck him senseless. ‘’Please, move, I need-need it fast,’’ begged Magnus and Alec grabbed onto his sides and he nodded, biting his lip and he cursed. Magnus was so hot and tight around him.

‘’Fuck, you feel so good,’’ said Alec and Magnus smiled. ‘’I won’t last-last long,’’ said Alec because it was the truth. It was going to be fast, but so, so good and Magnus nodded, feeling the same. Begging Alec to keep on going, Magnus took in a deep breath and Alec finally picked up a steady pace, thrusting into him, adjusting his angle a few times and then he finally found his prostate, Magnus letting out a low moan and Alec smiled. 

‘’There, there, again, Alec, fuck me harder,’’ begged Magnus and Alec gave him what he wanted, rolling his hips, picking up a fast pace, pounding into Magnus and he was feeling high on adrenaline and pleasure. He wasn’t one to hook up like that - he never did the whole friends with benefits before, but it felt amazing. There were no feelings attached, just sex and it felt amazing, Magnus moaning along. No emotional baggage, no nothing, just _pleasure_ and Alec was living for it.

‘’You love my dick, don’t you?’’ asked Alec, gritting his teeth and Magnus nodded.

‘’Yes, yes, I love it,’’ he muttered in between his moans, them getting high pitched because Alec kept fucking into him so perfectly, dropping his own hand down, jerking himself off and he allowed himself to feel pleasure, he took it. He deserved this and he was just… moaning over and over again, his head feeling high. It was just sex and he loved it, gripping the sheets. He was getting close, he was- ‘’I’m so close, Alec, I-’’

‘’Come for me,’’ said Alec. It was an order, his voice low and that alone was enough to push Magnus over the edge, Alec thrusting into him one final time, Magnus getting tighter and he came harder than ever. ‘’Fuck,’’ groaned Alec as he came and he shuddered.

Magnus came all over his hand, the sheets, but he didn’t care, moaning happily and Alec slowly pulled out, disposed the used condom at the bin that Magnus had at the side of his bed and Magnus just laughed as he rolled onto his side. Alec grinned and then looked around - now what? He never did this, so he didn’t really know- ‘’That was fucking amazing,’’ said Magnus and Alec grinned.

‘’Oh, yes,’’ said Alec and then hummed. ‘’Could I get your number, or something?’’ asked Alec and Magnus started laughing. ‘’If you want to, I mean I’d love to do this again. It was amazing,’’ said Alec and Magnus grinned.

‘’Oh, fuck, yes, we’re so doing this again,’’ said Magnus and Alec grinned all the way up to his ears and then he huffed. _Perfect!_ That was the hottest thing Alec has ever done and he was looking forward to the next time already! 

No strings attached, just pure fun. Amazing. 


	2. Chapter 2

“Someone’s in a good mood,” commented Izzy when she visited her brother at work. She was bringing him some files that he has asked of her to bring in and she could tell that Alec seemed different. He was in a good mood and she was pretty amused. Alec was usually in a bad mood, especially when Jace’s wedding rolled around. Izzy was still pissed that Jace decided to invite Alec’s ex even though he knew how much pain he caused to Alec. And Jace said that Alec told him that it was okay for him to invite his ex, but Jace really couldn’t read the atmosphere sometimes. Of course Alec was going to say that it was okay. He was Jace’s friend and Alec didn’t want to ruin his wedding day, but he should have had more sense in him. Izzy could see Alec at the wedding and he was a mess, but she was happy to see that he appeared to have managed to somehow recover. 

Alec pressed his lips together and then he stopped smiling, but, yes he was in a good mood. It’s been around two weeks since he and Magnus started their friendship with benefits and Alec didn’t really tell anyone about it because he knew that people would probably judge him, but at the same time he didn’t really give a fuck. Sex with Magnus was amazing - he never had such a mindblowing sex with any of his boyfriends before, so honestly he didn’t really care if anyone found out. It was what he needed - just fun and he was more than happy that he found someone like Magnus to do it with. Not only that they were so compatible, but they were in it for the same reason - fun, nothing more. And that was why it was so much fun. 

“I’m not really in a good mood,” said Alec and just shrugged it off, taking the papers that Izzy has brought over to him and he then hummed, nodding as he was reading through them. Still, he could feel that Izzy’s eyes were on him and in the end he dropped the papers back onto his desk and he then looked up, arching his eyebrow. He could just see that his sister was about to ask him something and he braced himself even though he already knew what she was going to say. He knew his sister pretty well and he just pursed his lips, his fingers tapping against the wooden desk. “Yes? Just say it, I know you’re thinking it,” said Alec and snorted.

“Nothing, I was just worried, because you know _ who _ was at Jace’s wedding as well,” said Izzy and Alec’s eyes darkened a little bit. He really didn’t want to talk about it and Izzy could see that he hit a nerve, quickly deciding to shift the topic of conversation. “I mean I was just worried, but it seems that you’re in a better mood,” said Izzy and Alec just huffed and then nodded. He appreciated the worries, but he was doing more than fine if he was being honest. “It was really insensitive of Jace that he still invited that dick and he even dared to bring his new-”

“Iz, I don’t wanna talk about it,” muttered Alec and then looked away. The feelings were still there, feelings of heartbreak and unlike at the wedding, he didn’t have any booze on him that would help him forget about the pain. They didn’t break up  _ that _ long ago and it took Alec a long time to move on from a broken relationship. “You shouldn’t worry, I’m doing more than okay actually,” he said and grinned when he remembered his last session with Magnus. It was around three days ago and he shuddered when he remembered how fucked out Magnus looked like. He was  _ stunning _ , dragging his tongue over his lower lip.  _ And those moans.  _ Alec gulped and then he needed to snap out of it because his imagination was wild and he was already imagining how good Magnus would look pinned down and bent over his desk.  _ Fuck _ .

“Oh,” said Izzy and the look on Alec’s face told her that maybe he did meet someone new after all? “Oh!” she then said again and then winked. “You’ve met someone? That’s amazing,” said Izzy and then rubbed her hands together and smiled softly. “Okay, okay, I won’t pry too much into it, but it’s good to see you back dating. I hope that your new boyfriend-” he started, but Alec interrupted her and shook his head.  _ No?  _ But the look on his face-

“I’m getting some, yes,” said Alec and then finally managed to stop imagining him fucking Magnus over is desk and he looked up at Izzy and just swallowed thickly. “But, it’s casual, we’re just having fun,” said Alec simply and shrugged it off. Izzy was confused and then she cocked her head to the side. It wasn’t like Alec to have friends with benefits? If that was like someone, it was like Jace before he met Clary and Izzy didn’t know how she felt about it. Because she knew Alec - he had the tendency to fall in love quickly without even knowing it himself. So, this could be a bad idea and she didn’t want him to get hurt.

“You’re trying to tell me that you have a friend with benefits?” asked Izzy, just to be sure and Alec nodded and his eyes were glowing. Oh, those were amazing benefits, he thought and he just started laughing when he saw the look on Izzy’s face. “Oh, that’s… I mean, wow,” she said and Alec just nodded. “Don’t wanna pry too much, but are you sure it’s a good idea, Alec? Because I don’t want you to get hurt again,” she said and Alec just waved it off because he was sure that he knew what he was doing.

“Iz, you worry too much, besides,” he said and grinned. “I know what I’m doing,” he said. “It’s no strings attached, Iz, and it’s amazing. We’re both on the same page, so you have nothing to worry about,” he said and then hummed again, his eyes not leaving the desk again. “I’m so not gonna let myself fall in love this time,” he said and then rolled his eyes. “Or ever again,” he grumbled and Izzy gave him a little sigh, but she didn’t say anything. If Alec knew what he was doing then there was nothing that she could do. Also, he was old enough to make his own decisions and she just finally smiled.

“Okay, then,” said Izzy. “I just do hope that you know what you’re getting yourself into,” she muttered, but Alec didn’t hear her because he just got a text from Magnus, who was asking him if he was busy later that day or not. 

**Magnus:** Free tonight?

**Alec:** You bet.

**Magnus:** Your place or mine this time?

Alec glanced over to the desk again and his smirk widened a little bit, biting his lip and he hoped that Magnus wasn’t going to find his request too odd once he was going to suggest something.

**Alec:** My office. There’s something I wanna try.

**Magnus:** Care to fill me in on that?

**Alec:** You, bent over my desk for starters. Not giving away too much, wanna keep you guessing ;)

**Magnus:** Fuck, it’s so on. I can’t wait. Text me the address of your office.

**Alec:** You bet ;).

* * *

The door of Alec’s office was locked, the blinds on the windows shut as the two of them were heavily making out. Magnus was seated on top of Alec’s desk and was trying his best to keep up with Alec’s hungry kisses. Alec’s lips claimed Magnus’ for the second time and Magnus pulled on Alec’s tie, pressing him closer up against him, spreading his legs open so that Alec could have a much closer access to him and he growled softly into their kiss when he felt Alec’s teeth biting into his lower lip gently and he laughed breathlessly, Alec pulling back a little bit and Magnus licked across his lower lip. 

It was later that evening and Magnus was looking forward to this for the entire day. He always wanted a hot office sex experience and he was finally getting it, Alec’s eyes dark and glazed with pure hunger and lust. Magnus  _ loved _ that look, the way Alec would look at him when he got all hot and bothered. Alec was pretty simple, Magnus learned pretty quickly what he had to do, what he needed to touch that he had Alec completely surrender to him and he smiled softly, Alec’s eyes going up and down Magnus’ dishevelled figure. 

Magnus’ clothes were all crinkled, a part of his shirt already unbuttoned and untucked from his pants. Alec really couldn’t help himself, he attacked Magnus as soon as he came over and Magnus didn’t really complain, because he loved it. Alec placed his hand onto Magnus’ thigh and he gently pressed his fingers into the sensitive spot, Magnus mewling softly. It was ridiculous just how responsive he was to Alec, but the other loved it and he couldn’t get enough of it. He was a starving man and he was going to take the pleasure that his body was craving for and he then moved his hand up and grinned when he felt that Magnus was already hard. Not all the way, but-

‘’Hard already?’’ teased Alec and Magnus just rolled his eyes and then swallowed thickly because Alec continued touching his cock through the layers of clothing and his pants soon became  _ too _ tight, toes curling and he just pressed up his hips against Alec’s palm. Fuck, that was so good and he then softly moaned when Alec leaned down, kissing all the way up his neck. 

‘’Hurry up,’’ whined Magnus and Alec grinned, but eventually nodded and then moaned when he felt Magnus’ hand going up behind his neck, pulling on the back of his head, holding him by his raven hair and Alec stuck his tongue out, trying to luck Magnus’ lip, but the other didn’t allow him to do so. ‘’Blow me,’’ ordered Magnus, wanting to feel those pretty lips around his cock again. Alec looked so beautiful sucking his cock and Alec just nodded, his throat getting dry. He also loved when Magnus ordered him around and he didn’t need to be told twice, quickly getting rid of Magnus’ pants and underwear, sinking onto his knees and he leaned up, holding Magnus’ legs spread apart. 

Alec’s mouth watered at the sight of Magnus’ cock, wrapping his fingers around the base of it and Magnus smiled. He hissed when he felt Alec licking a thick strip underside his cock, swirling his tongue around the tip of it and he threw his head back in delight when Alec didn’t stall that time and he finally took him inside.  _ Blessed he be for Alec’s no gag reflex.  _ Magnus groaned when Alec took him all the way back to his throat and Alec looked up, Magnus looking down at him and he nodded. ‘’That’s a good boy for me,’’ said Magnus as Alec started slowly bobbing his head up and down, feeling Magnus’ fingers in his hair again, moving his hand along with Alec, trying to show him that he could move a bit faster and Alec did just that, Magnus’ hips shaking. 

Alec loved Magnus’ dick, he promised that next time he was the one getting fucked, groaning at his own thoughts and he squirmed his legs together because he was already painfully hard and because he wasn’t the most patient person in the world, he decided to take care of that, slipping his other hand down, pulling his cock out of his pants, jerking himself off as he continued blowing Magnus at the same time and the other moaned loudly when he saw Alec pleasuring himself.

Alec’s jaw felt a little bit numb,  _ Magnus was far bigger than his ex -  _ and Alec loved it. Hollowing his cheeks, he sucked onto Magnus’ dick greedily, moving his tongue along and Magnus gave him a breathless laugh because he could just see how much Alec was enjoying himself down there. Truly was living out his fantasy to the best… and he was. It’s been on his mind for days now and Magnus could feel the pleasure building up - he was no match for the tightness of Alec’s throat and the warmth of his mouth. Alec could feel Magnus twitching more inside and he moaned along, but Magnus quickly pulled out.

‘’Fuck, I almost came,’’ said Magnus, his cheeks red a little bit and he huffed. Alec gave him a proud smile, wrapping his fingers again around Magnus’ sensitive member and he grinned. ‘’S-slow down,’’ laughed Magnus and Alec shrugged.

‘’You can come, I don’t mind,’’ said Alec happily, licking his lips and Magnus pulled his tie again pulling back onto his legs. 

‘’I know, but I’d much rather have this,’’ said Magnus, jerking Alec’s dick after pulling him onto his legs and Alec groaned and Magnus winked. ‘’Isn’t a part of your fantasy having me bent over the desk as you fuck me nice and hard?’’ asked Magnus, knowing how much the other appreciated his dirty talk and Alec cursed under his breath. Magnus grinned, leaning in and he licked Alec’s lips, the other trying to kiss him again, but Magnus pulled back and then placed a finger upon Alec’s lip and gave his cock a teasing squeeze at the time. ‘’Ah, ah, ah, only if you promise to-’’

‘’I’ll fuck you harder than ever, now kiss me,’’ growled Alec and just leaned in, kissing Magnus finally and the other just melted up against him. Alec was the one who broke the kiss and smiled. ‘’Turn around,’’ he said, his voice deep and Magnus was more than happy to hop onto the floor and he happily bent down, wiggling his ass playfully.

‘’Is this how you want me?’’ asked Magnus innocently. Alec was just standing and observing the view for a little while, finally snapping himself back to reality and he just nodded.

‘’Perfect,’’ said Alec and Magnus chuckled.

‘’Condoms?’’

‘’Second drawer on the left,’’ said Alec as he was busy with taking off his pants and Magnus smiled happily, opening up the drawer and he started laughing when he found condoms and lube, pulling both of them out and he snickered.

‘’You are well prepared, Mr Lightwood,’’ said Magnus teasingly and Alec grinned.

‘’Always,’’ said Alec and then gently pressed Magnus back against the desk, Magnus happily moaning out in delight and Alec was eating everything up. Magnus’ moans while he was working him open with his fingers were delicious, making him unable to wait to be buried deep down inside and fuck him against the desk. It was going to be  _ amazing _ , Alec quickly sliding a condom down his cock as he was done preparing Magnus and the other was pretty much barely hanging in there.

Magnus needed Alec, right there and then! Luckily for him, Alec wasn’t in the mood to keep things stalling anymore and he slid inside him in one thrust, Magnus grabbing onto the edge of the desk and he happily smiled. Fuck, he missed this. It’s been only a few days, but he was getting addicted to this and he looked over his shoulder to see how Alec was doing. ‘’You okay?’’ asked Alec, wanting to make sure that he didn’t hurt Magnus, he did go kind of rough and-

‘’Such a gentleman,’’ teased Magnus and started laughing.

‘’Sorry I asked,’’ said Alec and rolled his eyes. 

‘’I’m okay,’’ said Magnus and smiled then. ‘’Hurry up and move now, make my hot office sex fantasy come true,’’ said Magnus and Alec grinned all the way up to his ears, pushed Magus back down and finally started moving. Alec truly moved like a hurricane - he was all destruction and power and Magnus loved it. He loved every Alec’s thrust that came, hitting his prostate almost immediately and Magnus didn’t know if it was the setting or what but he was feeling it more than usually.

Magnus was pretty vocal, not holding back this time either but because they were in the office and Alec didn’t want someone to hear them after all, he brought his hand up to Magnus’ mouth. Magnus knew that he was too loud, but he couldn’t help it and he instead sucked onto Alec’s fingers, muffling his moans and Alec shuddered.  _ Fuck, Magnus was driving him crazy.  _

The wooden desk was moving together with them, things falling off as Magnus was trying to reach out and hold onto anything and Alec was smiling.  _ Amazing.  _ Truly, so fucking amazing and he hissed when he felt Magnus biting onto his fingers. But Magnus couldn’t hold out much longer; it’s been all too much. He was loving it and one particular thrust, hard and deep - just perfect - made him come untouched, moaning loudly and he tightened up around Alec, whose eyes widened, Magnus going limp and he was shaking. Alec soon realised that Magnus had reached his orgasm and he smiled. Oh, wow, and he didn’t even touch himself. Alec was proud and even more turned on. 

Pulling out, Magnus slowly turned around and his legs felt weak. Alec allowed Magnus to lean up against him and the other huffed, but chuckled softly. ‘’Sorry,’’ said Magnus and then pouted. ‘’Felt too good,’’ he muttered and Alec shook his head.

‘’No need to apologise, that was hot,’’ said Alec and Magnus hummed looking down. Feeling strength returning, he seated Alec onto his chair and Magnus waggled his eyebrows.

‘’That was rude of me,’’ said Magnus. ‘’Let me finish you off,’’ muttered Magnus and slid the condom off, swallowing Alec into his mouth and Alec was softly moaning. Magnus’ mouth felt amazing on him and it didn’t take too long before he was also coming, Magnus allowing him to finish in his mouth, breathlessly laughing as he was looking up at Alec, who looked just blissful. 

_ Fuck. _

* * *

‘’Hungry?’’ asked Alec and Magnus moaned.

‘’Fucking starving,’’ complained Magnus, buttoning his shirt up. Still in Alec’s office, they were getting dressed up again, both of them finally feeling relieved. They successfully fucked each other’s brains out. Again. 

‘’I’ll order us some take out,’’ offered Alec and Magnus nodded. He was starving indeed, especially after  _ that _ hot session with Alec and he just smirked as Alec called up to his favourite place, ordering them more than enough food. Magnus wasn’t the only one starving and Magnus was was wondering if it was wise for them to share a meal. Then again  _ they did a lot more than that.  _ Still, usually after their sessions, Alec would usually leave - or Magnus - it depended where they were doing it. They never actually sat down and talked, the most talking that they did was at the wedding. 

But silence was again among them and they ate in silence for the most part. Still, Alec decided that he should probably say something. ‘’Must be nice,’’ said Alec and Magnus arched his brow. ‘’To be the boss in your own company,’’ pointed it out Alec and Magnus snorted. Not really. ‘’You get to boss people around and not be treated like a fucking mop,’’ he said and Magnus shrugged.

‘’I suppose,’’ said Magnus. ‘’But it ain’t all roses and peaches, especially if you have to deal with useless staff,’’ said Magnus and his eyes darkened. ‘’Usually it’s me for everything,’’ said Magnus and rolled his eyes. ‘’ _ Oh, Magnus help us with this, oh, oh Magnus, please do this, do that _ ,’’ he said and then stared down at the food. ‘’It’s not fun, nope,’’ he said. 

‘’Ah,’’ said Alec and then sighed. ‘’You see, my boss is like that - makes me do everything. I have to do  _ my _ part of the job and half of the others’ that are working here,’’ he said. ‘’Everyone does their work half-assed,’’ grumbled Alec. ‘’And because I follow the rules, the boss sees that and takes advantage of it,’’ he said and cursed. ‘’Not getting paid enough for it.’’

‘’You should ask for a raise,’’ said Magnus.

‘’Yeah, right,’’ scoffed Alec. ‘’I happen to like my head, thank you very much. You ask for a raise and she bites your head off,’’ he said and then shuddered. Magnus laughed and Alec grumbled again. ‘’Don’t laugh, she’s a monster,’’ he carried on and then decided that he needed a drink. ‘’Beer?’’ offered Alec and waved with a bottle of it in front of Magnus’ eyes and the other grinned.

‘’Not really a beer person,’’ he said. ‘’I prefer cocktails,’’ he said and Alec arched a brow. ‘’Beer’s too bitter.’’

‘’Are you a kid?’’ joked Alec and then shrugged. ‘’There’s no fancy drinks here around, it’s either beer or nothing,’’ said Alec and offered the bottle again to Magnus. In the end, Magnus decided to take it and he made a face as he took a sip of it and swallowed. ‘’Seriously?’’ asked Alec, laughing softly. ‘’It’s delicious.’’

‘’Ah, sorry, my taste buds like something more sophisticated than a cheap bottle of beer,’’ joked Magnus and Alec narrowed his eyes. He crinkled up a napkin, making it into a little ball and he aimed to throw it into Magnus’ head, but he missed terribly and Magnus burst into loud laughter. ‘’Your aims sucks,’’ joked Magnus and Alec just said something under his breath, Magnus not really making out what it was.

‘’Your taste in drinks suck,’’ said Alec in the end.

‘’Really, that’s what you’re going with for your come back?’’ asked Magnus and snorted. Alec gave him an offended look, but eventually he decided to let it go. Magnus smiled and then sighed happily. It was a good day, definitely. ‘’Free on weekend?’’ asked Magnus curiously and Alec glanced at him and then smirked, nodding.

‘’Saturday’s busy, but Sunday,’’ he said and then hummed happily. ‘’I’m game,’’ said Alec and Magnus was grinning again - amazing, because there were things that he also wanted to try out with Alec. And since they were now trying something that Alec wanted, it would be only fair if they did what he wanted to try next! That was if Alec was game, but knowing him, he was pretty much in for everything.

‘’Good, because I wanna try something,’’ said Magnus and Alec perked up.

‘’Oh, what?’’

‘’I’ll keep you guessing,’’ said Magnus and winked and Alec rolled his eyes and in the end Magnus just laughed. ‘’I want to take the lead for a change, I want-’’

‘’To top?’’ asked Alec without hesitation and Magnus nodded. ‘’Yes, please,’’ said Alec, breathing out and he was again thinking about it already and Magnus winked. ‘’Can it be Sunday already please?’’ asked Alec and Magnus snorted again. Okay, so Alec was very interested, huh? Having Alec panting underneath him in his bed gave him such a lovely image.

‘’Round two at my place now?’’ asked Magnus and Alec groaned because he would love to but he still had stuff to do and he just lifted a finger up.

‘’Rain check,’’ said Alec. ‘’Need to put all these in order,’’ said Alec and then glanced over to the desk - wait, where were the files? Looking to the floor, he snorted and then picked them up. ‘’Here they are,’’ he said, trying to scramble the papers together and Magnus pouted, but then decided that weekend it was. 

‘’Have fun,’’ said Magnus and hopped off of Alec’s desk, who narrowed his eyes and clicked with his tongue.

‘’Sadist,’’ joked Alec, his eyes on Magnus, who was getting ready to leave. 

‘’Till weekend then,’’ said Magnus and Alec nodded.

‘’Sunday it is,’’ said Alec, winking and then he groaned as he glanced at the files. Okay, he got this! Magnus smiled and then stepped out of Alec’s office and took in a deep breath - definitely an amazing day.

Sex and food, what more could he ask for?


	3. Chapter 3

“He has that creepy smile on again,” commented Raphael and Ragnor and Catarina snorted next to him and looked at their friend. Indeed, Magnus was drifting off again and there was a grin on his face as Magnus was thinking of the Sunday that he spent with Alexander - two rounds of mind blowing sex it was and he dragged his tongue over his lower lip. It was Monday, the next day, and Magnus wondered if Alec would be able to walk today, snickering a little bit and he then sighed.  _ Oh, yes, he gave it to Alec hard and rough, like the other begged for.  _ And, oh man, did Alec know how to beg. He should have asked the switch a while ago if he knew that it was going to be this fun. Alec was amazing topping and bottoming and he just sighed, but then a knock on the table made him snap out of it and he glanced over at his friends.

It was Monday and he pouted because Mondays sucked, biting into his lip and then he sighed. It was lunch time and Magnus was meeting with his friends. Ragnor was his employee, meeting up with Catarina and Raphael at their favourite restaurant for a quick meal and honestly he loved it. Hanging out like this with his friends was what made the work day bearable and he just puffed his cheeks. He didn’t get why everyone was snickering around the table and he raised an eyebrow and glanced at Ragnor. “Mind telling me what’s so funny?” asked Magnus and Ragnor just shrugged.

“Nothing,” said Ragnor and glanced over to Raphael, who was scowling at Magnus. “More laughing at him,” he then said, pointing to their youngest friend and Magnus arched a brow. He didn’t really get what was happening around him because he was living out his fantasy again just for a second, but it truly was such an amazing weekend and he just huffed. “Raphi here didn’t appreciate your story,” he said. “About how you spent your weekend,” carried on Ragnor and Raphael wrinkled his nose.

“Over-sharing as always,” grumbled the younger one and continued eating his food. Magnus rolled his eyes and then glanced over Catarina, who wasn’t saying much. Unlike for Ragnor, who was supporting this new relationship that he has started with this Alec guy, Catarina was a bit concerned if it really was a good idea. Magnus had never really tried something like that with any of his previous lovers, so she just worried that he wasn’t setting himself out for yet another heartbreak, but he didn’t say anything. She didn’t want to appear to be a know it all. Magnus was old enough to make his own decisions. Still, she wished that he was a bit more careful about it. 

Magnus had described to them all that this was purely physical - that what he and Alec had was a mutual understanding of them being in it for only the fun and pleasure, but still, Catarina worried. Magnus wanted to reply with a snarky remark, but then didn’t and instead he just took in a deep breath and his stomach reminded him that he needed to get some of the food in him because the lunchtime was slowly coming to an end and he still didn’t even take a bite of the food. Magnus groaned because he knew that he was soon about to return to his office and then he just pouted rolled his eyes.

_ Maybe thinking about Sunday was going to make the annoying Monday pass by quicker.  _ Hopefully.

* * *

Alec sat onto the chair somewhat gingerly and he bit his lip and then tried not to laugh too much, but he was feeling quite sore. He had no regrets, though, because he  _ loved _ the reason behind the pain and he gritted his teeth, slowly leaning back and he then glanced towards the clock. Mondays sucked and he just shook his head, arching his eyebrow when his phone buzzed and his eyes widened a little when he saw that it was a text from Magnus. They didn’t really text apart from checking in if their meeting was happening. Alec reached for his phone and he laughed when he read Magnus’ text.

**Magnus:** Able to get to work today? ;-) 

Alec rolled his eyes, but it was true. He kind of was tempted to call in that he wasn’t coming, but at the end of the day, he decided to drag himself over to the office. He was going to make sure that he was taking things easy today because he really didn’t feel in the mood to be productive member of society that day and he just sighed again and then he hit the reply button and thought what to write back to Magnus. 

**Alec:** I don’t break that easy, I’m tough :P

Alec then placed his phone back and tried to look what he had to do that day. His secretary had brought to him a whole pile of papers that he needed to look through and he just wrinkled his nose. He was about to start, but then his phone buzzed again and his eyes travelled over to the phone and he cursed. It was Magnus again and talking to him sounded a lot more fun than reading all that crap. “Maybe later,” said Alec, dropping the papers again and he then grabbed his phone.

**Magnus:** Not feeling too sore, I hope. I went kinda rough on you.

Alec snorted and then he shook his head - yes, but it was Alec that asked for it and he just grinned. It was rough, but he needed it. It took him a while to get used to his size though - his ex boyfriend could never measure up and he just giggled a little bit and he decided to reply right away.

**Alec:** My ass and legs are suffering the consequences of yesterday, yes, but I asked for it, remember? ;-)

“Okay, now enough,” said Alec, rubbed his palms together and then glanced at the papers. “Let’s be productive after all, or I’ll truly lose my head,” mumbled Alec.  _ He was kind of afraid of his boss!  _ But then his phone buzzed again and his eyes wandered over to it again. Temptation was too strong to resist and he decided that he was going to reply to only that text. The last one, he promised!

**Magnus:** How could I forget? :P You kept moaning how I feel much better than your ex ;-)

Alec shuddered and then bit his lip. It was so true and he wondered when they were hooking up next. They didn’t really discuss it yesterday because Alec was way too exhausted by the end to ask about it. Still now that his energy was back, he was looking forward to the next time and he decided to ask - they were texting at the moment anyway, so why not, right? 

**Alec:** Can meet up again soon? ;-)

**Magnus:** Friday?

Alec’s jaw dropped - Friday was five days from then! That was all the way at the end of the working week and not being able to blow out some steam in the meantime sounded almost cruel and he pouted. Though it was true that Magnus mentioned something about travelling that week, but he didn’t really pay attention.  _ That was bad on his part.  _ Alec huffed and still decided to express his sadness about it. 

**Alec:** :’-(

**Magnus:** You know I’m gonna be out from town for this wedding that I’m planning. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to make the wait worth it. You can count on it ;-)

**Alec:** :-D

Alec was smiling along as he was texting Magnus and then took in a deep breath. Okay, it was going to be a long ass week until Friday, but he gritted his teeth because Magnus promised that he was going to make it all worth it and he wondered what the other had it mind. Though, if he was being completely honest, every single time was a complete  _ mind blow  _ when they were hooking up and he then pressed his lips and then glanced over again at the files that he was asked to sort out. Taking in a deep breath, he then nodded to himself and straightened himself up on the chair.

‘’Oh,’’ whined Alec and then snorted. Even though he wasn’t going to be meeting up with Magnus, made sure that he was going to be feeling him for days, huh? A sly smirk spread across his lips and then he shook his head, deciding that he really needed to get to work. Rubbing palms together, he then finally decided to go back to work even though he hated it. Every single minute of it. 

* * *

Magnus usually liked travelling due to work - it was fun to get out from town and plan the weddings even though he hated weddings themselves. He still liked planning parties and special events, so it was fun, but this was time was going to be completely different. It was Tuesday and that was when he got notified that there were going to be some changes coming up with the planning. This one was a very demanding client and Magnus hated agreeing to plan the wedding for her - but it was going to be worth.  _ She was prepared to pay the double amount!  _ But she was… horrible. A true Bridezilla. Not the first one that Magnus dealt with, but still!

Magnus was waiting for the bride to be at the place where the reception was taking place and it was truly a stunning place and Magnus had already all planned out how to make it look even more stunning. It was truly going to be beautiful, but he was still concerned about these  _ changes.  _ He didn’t really know what they were going to be, because she didn’t tell him and he didn’t like it. Still, he gritted his teeth and tried to be as professional as he could, taking in a deep breath and then he glanced around when he finally saw the woman coming closer to him and his eyes darkened. 

‘’Right, stay calm, Magnus,’’ he said to himself and then he smiled. Apparently that time her future husband decided to join in on the planning as well, though he usually didn’t really have much say in it. He was there just to make himself  _ appear _ present, but Magnus could tell that he didn’t like all of this. He was the type of the person that preferred smaller things and he felt for him. Magnus liked planning bigger weddings, but if he was ever getting married again - probably not though - he was going to have a smaller one. The big, over the top wish was Camille’s, but he didn’t really mind it because he was doing it for love and- he quickly forced himself to stop thinking about that and then he just greeted the  _ lucky _ couple. 

‘’Magnus, darling, hi,’’ she chirped, her voice high and Magnus just glanced over at the poor man.  _ He must have really loved her if he was prepared to put up with that voice forever.  _ Trying not to be rude, he just smiled and then hugged his client because he could see that she was going in for a hug and she happily squealed. ‘’Ah, this place is truly stunning, like you promised,’’ said the woman and Magnus nodded.

‘’Yes,’’ said Magnus happily. Good, at least she appreciated his hard work. It was tough getting the spot free for the wedding because it was booked for three years in advance already, but Magnus knew how to work and he managed to squeeze them in. ‘’I’m glad you like it. I think it’ll truly make your wedding special,’’ said Magnus and then clasped his hands together, looking around. ‘’I can already see it all, there is where the tables are going to be and-’’

‘’About that,’’ she said and Magnus’ eyebrow twitched.

‘’Yes?’’

‘’I was thinking that maybe we could hear a second opinion?’’ she suggested and Magnus’ jaw dropped - wait, what? Magnus glanced at the poor man, who muttered him a very apologetic  _ sorry _ and Magnus glanced over to her again. ‘’I just thought that maybe,’’ she said and then squealed again. ‘’I mean,’’ she said and then just decided to come out and say it. ‘’You planned my friend’s wedding,’’ she said and Magnus narrowed his eyes.  _ Okay, and?  _ ‘’Back then you were still working together with your business partner,’’ she said and her eyes glowed.

Magnus’ eyes darkened. ‘’I beg you a pardon?’’ He knew too damn well who she had in her mind, but he also didn’t quite get  _ why _ she was pointing it out for him. Then again - she said that they could hear a second opinion and…  _ oh, no, no, no.  _ If she thought that he was going to somehow work with Camille of all people then she was really, oh, so very wrong. 

‘’Yes, Camille Belcourt,’’ said the woman finally and Magnus glanced down. After the divorce they split their business as well and she was now running her own wedding company. Magnus couldn’t give a flying fuck about it - he didn’t really care if she was more successful than him, he truly didn’t give a shit about it. As long as she stayed far away then he was happy, but to think- ‘’I was there at my friend’s wedding and it was just so stunning,’’ she said and then sighed happily. ‘’I also saw the pictures of other weddings that you’ve planner together and it’s just - you two work so well together,’’ she said and Magnus just swallowed thickly.

‘’I’m afraid that I can’t work with Camille again,’’ said Magnus and her fiance finally stepped closer to her and shook his head.

‘’ _ I told you it’s a bad idea, let’s just stick with- _ ’’

‘’But, it’s my special day,’’ she said and looked at him. Ah, she was going to throw the temper tantrum? Great. Magnus pressed his lips together and tried his best not to just walk out on her. She then went back to Magnus and clasped her hands together. ‘’Please? I’ll pay you more,’’ she said and Magnus shook his head.  _ No money was worth it.  _ ‘’Come on, it’s really a special day, getting married. You know, right? I just wanna be happy,’’ she carried on and Magnus grumbled. The guilt tripping strategy usually worked on him, yes. ‘’You really saying that you don’t want me to be happy?’’

‘’It’s not, I just… I can do a better job on my own and-’’

‘’Please, I can’t do this without you two both,’’ she carried on her whining and Magnus glanced down, biting on his lip. It wasn’t like he didn’t want his client to be happy, but working with Camille was a terrible idea. But because Magnus was a people pleaser and he didn’t want anyone to be unhappy because of him, he eventually agreed to work with Camille, but he regretted his choices pretty much as soon as he opened his mouth to say yes. It was going to suck so much.

* * *

Business trips like that usually gave Magnus a little bit of space to lay back and enjoy himself, travel around the place a little bit since he didn’t really plan the weddings for the entire day, but that time around it was completely a different experience. He was meeting with Camille and the bride on wednesday and he wasn’t looking forward to it at all. They were meeting in one of the pubs, but the client was running late and Camille was already there and Magnus just wanted to make himself disappear from the face of the Earth, quite literally. 

‘’It’s good to see you again, Magnus,’’ said Camille and Magnus rolled his eyes.

‘’Can’t say the same,’’ said Magnus and didn’t even bother being nice to her - why, she completely destroyed all of his trust to ever love again, so the only thing that he could do was to be cold to her. 

Camille seemed offended and she just rolled her eyes and then shook her head. Magnus hoped that the client was going to be there soon with them because if not he was going to cancel their agreement of working with Camille. ‘’Come on, Magnus, get over it,’’ she said and rolled her eyes. ‘’It’s been more than a year,’’ she said and then shook his head. ‘’I moved on-’’

‘’Good for you, Camille,’’ deadpanned Magnus. ‘’I mean it’s fucking fantastic that you managed to get over me pretty much the same day after our divorce huh?’’ he asked and then glanced down. As the two of them were signing their divorce papers with their lawyers, another man her was already waiting for her outside of the room - like he said, she moved on before he caught her cheating. It was just a mess and he really didn’t appreciate being reminded of it like that. 

‘’Are you angry at me because I’m happy now?’’ she asked, no filter on and Magnus’ jaw dropped.  _ Happy, she was happy now?!  _ And before?! He didn’t- he wasn’t enough, was that why she decided to be unfaithful to him?! And after so much that he gave up for her, after so many things that he given for her?! She knew all of it, yet she still decided to say all of those things?! It hurt, it fucking hurt. He didn’t love her anymore, but it still hurt that he wasn’t enough. At least he thought that they were happy for the little while, but not even that was true? Huh, he truly was a failure.

‘’You weren’t happy before?’’ asked Magnus, his voice small.

‘’It’s different,’’ claimed Camille.

‘’How so?’’ asked Magnus and pressed his lips together. ‘’You knew how much I loved you and you still-’’ he said and then took in a deep breath, deciding that he wasn’t going to argue with her. It wasn’t good from the business point of view. He and Camille did work good together, so he was going to focus on that. Though he was pretty sure that they were going to clash in that too. ‘’Doesn’t matter,’’ said Magnus and then just took in a deep breath. ‘’Let’s just focus on the planning,’’ he said and Camille nodded. At least they agreed on something. ‘’And try not to get our personal things get in between it.’’

‘’Agreed,’’ said Camille and sighed. ‘’Need to make this wedding out of this world, especially because it’s going to be probably the last wedding I’ll be planning,’’ she said and Magnus arched a brow. ‘’I mean at least for now,’’ she said. ‘’I’ll be taking a little time off,’’ she then continued and Magnus truly didn’t want to know why she was going to be taking a time off, but he had a feeling that she was going to tell him anyway, so he asked.

‘’Do I dare to ask why?’’

‘’You know how this business is,’’ she said and then took in a deep breath. ‘’Very stressful and stress isn’t very good for when you’re starting a family,’’ she said and Magnus froze up. Camille proceeded by telling him that she and her  _ husband _ were thinking of starting up a family of their own;a child. And that was enough to break Magnus’ heart all over again. Magnus brought it up once - them having children together, but she expressed the wish that she didn’t want children. Career was more important to her and of course Magnus respected her wish.

Much to his luck, the bride to be finally decided to grace them with her presence so that they could start planning, but Magnus wasn’t really feeling it anymore. He was heartbroken because all this time he thought that Camille was a complete bitch. But it turned out that he just wasn’t good enough.

For anything.

* * *

Friday evening rolled around (finally) and Alec was waiting for Magnus, quite impatiently. He was quite pent up, it was a long, long week after him and he was just happy that Magnus was finally back so that they could get it on and have a little bit of fun. Alec was slaving off in the office for the whole five days, but he got off earlier that day and it was just perfect because it gave him enough time to go back home, shower and wait for Magnus. He was just out of the shower, deciding that he wasn’t going to dress back up, leaving the towel around his waist and it was just perfect timing - just as he stepped out from the bathroom, there was someone ringing the doorbell and he hurried over to the door, opening it and he grinned widely when he saw Magnus standing there. 

‘’Hey, finally, h-’’ he started, but he didn’t get to finish his sentence, because as soon as Magnus closed the door, he locked their lips together. Magnus didn’t give Alec even the time to greet him properly and Alec laughed breathlessly, pulling back, but Magnus then kissed him again, Alec happily moaning along, kissing him back as well. It wasn’t like Magnus to jump him as soon as he got inside of his place - at least they chatted a little bit, but Alec figured out that the other was just as pent up as he was, so he decided that talking could wait until later. First it was doing the deed. 

Magnus felt like shit, gloomy and he just… wanted to get lost into the haze of pleasure. He didn’t want to think about it, he didn’t want to talk, he just wanted to forget Camille, so he couldn’t wait to be finally over at Alec’s, so that he could make him forget. The whole business trip turned out to be a horrible, horrible idea and even though that Magnus was keeping things okay on the business and professional level, privately he was suffering. It would be easier to walk away from this project, but he didn’t want to make his client unhappy. He’d feel guilty walking away and not giving them what they wanted. 

‘’Fuck, I missed this,’’ groaned Alec, holding Magnus by the back of his neck and he grinned when he felt Magnus’ hands going down to his towel, hooking his fingers under it and Alec gasped softly as he felt Magnus undoing the towel, it falling on the floor and his smile was growing. Magnus still wasn’t saying much, but the way that he was kissing him made him think and believe that Magnus missed this just as much, Alec pulling Magnus even closer, placing his hands down, cupping Magnus’ ass and he felt the other finally getting him some response - he moaned loudly into their kiss. 

Good, it was working - he was slowly, but gradually finally starting to forget about Camille and he mewled into their kiss when he felt Alec slipping his fingers in between his- ‘’Oh, fuck,’’ moaned Magnus and bit Alec’s lower lip, who happily smiled and then pulled back.

‘’Bedroom?’’ asked Alec because he really couldn’t wait.

‘’Yes,’’ moaned Magnus and Alec grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, dragging him towards his bedroom. Magnus climbed onto the bed happily and Alec quickly straddled his legs, their lips colliding together again and Alec smiled again.

‘’Better keep your promise,’’ said Alec, nipping at Magnus’ neck. ‘’I waited for five whole days,’’ he moaned along as he kissed all the way up Magnus’ neck, biting his lip and then he kissed Magnus again. 

Magnus, who was below Alec closed his eyes and tried his best to get into the mood, but the more that he tried, the more impossible it was getting. There he had a man that was lusting over him, kissing him like his life depended on him, yet he couldn’t get it up at all. Feeling frustrated, Magnus tried to think of anything else but Camille, but who was he kidding - the business trip completely messed him up. He didn’t know that Camille would still have that big of an impact on him. 

The fact that Camille was starting a family with the idiot that she cheated him on hurt the most and he couldn’t move past that. He gave her everything, he gave up a lot for her, to make her happy. He always wanted children, but was ready to give up that for her and she just- Magnus stopped kissing Alec, so the other pulled back a little bit and his eyes widened when he saw tears in Magnus’ eyes. Those were three long days, the sadness was eating him up more and more and unable to even get himself lost in the haze of pleasure was what pushed him over the edge, the sadness in his heart spilling over and he just quickly placed his palms over his eyes and sniffled softly.

‘’That’s not a happy face,’’ said Alec and then narrowed his eyes. Alec wasn’t good in situation like this - dealing with people when they were emotional. He meant well, but he somehow always said the wrong things and made them feel even worse. Alec quickly climbed off of Magnus and softly huffed. Sitting there in silence didn’t feel right, he needed to say something, but he really- ‘’Um,’’ said Alec and Magnus quickly started wiping his tears away. ‘’Do you wanna talk about it?’’ he asked. Good, that was a good way to start a conversation, right?

‘’Not really,’’ said Magnus, sniffling again and then he sat up, took in a deep breath and then wiped his tears away. ‘’It’s okay, I’m okay, let’s do this and-’’

‘’No,’’ said Alec and shook his head. It didn’t feel right, Magnus obviously wasn’t okay even if he didn’t want to talk about it. Magnus flinched - he couldn’t even do this right, could he? ‘’Um,’’ he said and the looked around. He was going to throw him out? Magnus wasn’t going to be too surprised. ‘’Let’s just watch some Netflix?’’ asked Alec and Magnus’ mouth hung open. ‘’If you want, if not-’’

‘’But I promised you-’’

‘’Ah,’’ said Alec and waved it off, putting on his underwear.

‘’I’m sorry,’’ mumbled Magnus and Alec placed his hands on top of his sides.

‘’Don’t be silly,’’ said Alec and then huffed. ‘’Besides we’re  _ friends _ with benefits, no?’’ asked Alec and Magnus nodded. ‘’There you go, we can hang out without doing it as well,’’ he decided and managed to make Magnus smile just a little bit. 

‘’Okay, I’ll stay and watch some Netflix,’’ said Magnus. Going back to his apartment that was empty was something that he didn’t want to do just yet and Alec nodded. As he was getting dressed, Magnus was in the living room, picking out a movie for them to watch. He decided on the most bloody and gorey movie that he could think of. There wasn’t anything else that he was in the mood for. 

Magnuss smiled. That was kind of Alec that he invited him to stay over. Sniffling, he then took in a deep breath and smiled when he saw that Alec was back. He brought a bowl of popcorn as well as two mugs and handed Magnus his. Magnus didn’t know what to expect, but hot cocoa wasn’t it. ‘’Cocoa?’’ asked Magnus and snorted.

‘’Helps me feel better when I feel down,’’ said Alec and shrugged. Such a little level of kindness and Magnus was again-

‘’Thank you,’’ whispered Magnus, lower lip shaking again and Alec took in a deep breath, eyes widening when he saw the movie that Magnus picked.

‘’Somebody really pissed you off, huh?’’ asked Alec.

‘’My ex.’’

‘’I’ll go get something stronger,’’ said Alec immediately and Magnus chuckled, but shook his head. 

‘’No, it’s fine, I’m not in the mood for drinking anyway,’’ said Magnus and puffed his cheeks. ‘’Apparently,’’ he said. ‘’I wasn’t good enough for her,’’ said Magnus and Alec. ‘’I thought it was her all this time, but apparently it’s my-’’

‘’Nope,’’ said Alec. 

‘’Huh?’’

‘’She cheated, right?’’

‘’Yes, but I didn’t-’’

‘’She’s to blame,’’ said Alec. 

‘’They’re planning to start a family,’’ said Magnus. He didn’t even know why he was opening up to Alec like that. It was easier.  _ No strings attached, right?  _ ‘’I-I also wanted… children, but she… I wasn’t good enough and-’’ he said and his voice trailed off, holding onto the mug silently and Alec bit his lip. Alec could feel his pain, his ex also made him feel like he wasn’t good enough. But this was more, there was never talk of children with him and his ex boyfriend. So the hurt was deeper and-

‘’I’m so sorry, but it’s not you,’’ said Alec and Magnus scoffed, sniffling again and Alec quite quickly figured out what Magnus needed that evening. It wasn’t sex, but a simple hug. Alec slowly reached forward with his hand and removed the mug from Magnus’ hands, placing it onto the coffee table and Magnus looked up at him. Before he could ask what was wrong, Alec gave him a hug and Magnus’ eyes widened and he gasped softly, Alec’s arms around him and Magnus took in a deep breath. ‘’Don’t let her make you feel like this, you’re good enough,’’ whispered Alec and Magnus just nodded, and returned Alec the hug.

All he needed was this - a simple hug and Magnus slowly smiled, finally cheering up. Just a little bit. Camille was still on his mind, but surprisingly now that he was in Alec’s arms, she couldn’t hurt him. 


	4. Chapter 4

“And, look, this is Clary and I walking down the beach,” said Jace happily, showing them all the photos of his and Clary’s honeymoon and Alec tried not to roll his eyes too much. He didn’t mind it, of course not - he was glad that his brother and his wife had such a lovely time on their little time off, but at the same time enough was enough. Alec was over at his parents’ place - they were all there; his parents, Jace and Clary, Izzy with her boyfriend and Max. Maryse was happily sighing with every photo and Alec just grinned, glancing over at Izzy, who was also getting bored with it. Ah, so he wasn’t the only one!  _ It was because every photo was exactly the same and it was getting kind of tiring. _

Heck, even Clary over at Jace’s side was getting kind of annoyed and Alec just snorted. But then again, Alec didn’t want to be a dick and he just sat there and listened to the documentary that Jace made and he just huffed under his breath. He wasn’t going to lie, the two of them had a lovely time on their honeymoon, biting onto his lip and he then glanced down. Maybe he was even jealous, just a little bit and then a sad smile spread across his lips because if he the breakup didn’t happen, he and his ex were supposed to go on a holiday like that as well. 

It was supposed to be a romantic trip to Rome and it was going to be completely amazing, but then all of that had to get ruined and Alec just had to swallow back the bitter feelings and he puffed his cheeks. It was kind of pointless to be dwelling on the past and he looked back up, grinning when he saw that Jace had taken pretty much the same picture of Clary at least ten times, from every and each possible angle - claiming that he only wanted to capture her beauty, but it only made Clary roll her eyes even more and Alec just snorted and then just shook his head and then huffed under his breath. 

Alec’s phone buzzed right about the time that Jace finally moved onto the next ten completely same pictures and Alec took his phone out from his pocket and smiled when he saw that he had a text from Magnus - confirming about their meeting later that day? Alec had a feeling that he was going to be feeling like shit after watching all of those honeymoon pictures that Jace was going to be showing them and that was why he decided to meet up with Magnus that day and luckily the other agreed, but they still had to confirm the details of their meeting and a little sly smirk spread across Alec’s lips and he opened up the text and he chuckled.

**Magnus:** Still on for today right? Just confirming that you didn’t change your mind!

Alec chuckled and bit his lip, looking up to see if Jace saw that he wasn’t paying attention anymore, but Jace was completely lost in his own little bubble, that he didn’t really notice that Max was texting his friends, Izzy and Simon were whispering and the only ones truly paying attention to them were their parents, Alec snickering under his breath and he then decided to reply to Magnus - he had nothing better to do anyway. Hitting the reply button, he got straight to replying.

**Alec:** Of course we’re on, can’t wait to get it on today.

Still, maybe he should ask if he was feeling better? They didn’t meet since that day that Magnus had mentioned meeting his ex. That day went surprisingly fun - they didn’t do it, but they had a lot of fun just hanging out, watching the movie and chatting. Alec found Magnus easy to talk to and he liked hanging out. Still, he didn’t really ask since that day if he was doing better and he kind of wanted to know. He didn’t want to pressure Magnus into something if he was still feeling down about it. 

**Alec:** You okay, though? Evil ex no longer on your mind?

Alec then locked the screen of his phone, looked up and nodded as Jace was still explaining about their honeymoon -  _ and he was still on the same picture.  _ Clary was really hanging in there next to him and Alec grinned and then shook his head. Jace was never like this with any of his other girlfriends before (well, Clary was his wife now, but still!), he was a completely puppy when it came to Clary and it was kind of cute. It showed how much he loved her and Clary really had to love him if she was ready to deal with his whiny ass every single day. 

Alec’s phone buzzed again very soon after he sent that text and Alec quickly unlocked it and he smiled when he saw Magnus’ name written on the screen again and he read his text, hoping that he was okay.

**Magnus:** Oh, what is that? Are you concerned about me? ;-)

**Magnus:** Yes, I’m fine. Your cocoa truly is magical, it chased evil Camille away completely. 

Alec hummed, yes he was kind of worried, actually. They were friends, so of course? He didn’t really get where Magnus was aiming with that and he just smiled softly and then glanced up again. Ah, Jace has finally moved on from that picture now and was now presenting Clary’s beauty on another photo and he just bit his lip and then glanced back down onto the screen of his phone and finally hit reply button.

**Alec:** I’m a good friend, Magnus. :-( Of course I worry. But it’s good that the witch isn’t on your mind anymore. Also, I’ll make sure that today evening you completely forget about her even more ;-)

**Magnus:** I’m already looking forward to it. Your place or mine?

**Alec:** Hmm. Mine? 

**Magnus:** Sounds good, should I bring some food for after the fun? ;-)

Alec snickered and then he hummed. A little bit of food did sound actually amazing because after their sessions he was always starving and he just grinned because it seemed that Magnus already had a plan about it all and he just hummed happily, biting his lip and he replied back to him, completely not paying attention to Jace anymore and he did feel about it, but at the same time-

**Alec:** Sounds like a plan to me.

**Magnus:** What are you in mood for? ;-)

Alec thought about it and for some reason he was craving pizza and he just hummed happily, his stomach already making it loud and clear that he was already starving for it - pizza or Magnus? Probably both. 

**Alec:** Pizza! <3

**Magnus:** Pizza it is ;-)

**Alec:** Yay!

“Alec,” whined Jace and Alec finally snapped out of it, narrowing his eyes and apparently the slide show was already all done and Alec just quickly locked his phone and then nodded, pretending that he was paying attention. Izzy just shook her head next to him and he just started laughing. “Did you even pay attention? At all?” he whined and Alec nodded because yes, in fact, he was. Not fully, but he was!

“Of course!”

“Yeah, right,” said Jace. 

“I did,” said Alec, nodding. “I got to see Clary’s beauty from every and each angle,” he said and nodded. “You did an amazing job, dude, truly stunning pictures,” he said and Clary was laughing there at the side. Jace smiled again because that seemed to please him - a little bit of complimenting him and Clary. 

“She’s so pretty, isn’t she?” asked Jace and glanced at Clary. “I’m such a lucky, lucky guy!”

“Jace, come on, stop it,” said Clary, flushing and she playfully slapped his shoulder. Alec smiled and looked back down. They were so happy, sometimes it hurt seeing them so happy. But - he was soon going to forget, for he was soon meeting Magnus!

* * *

‘’Oh, fuck, right there,’’ groaned Alec as he was pushed against the tailed wall and Magnus smiled as he stood behind him, Alec spreading his legs a little bit, his hands against the wet wall and he licked across his lower lip. Round two was taking place in the shower and Magnus was having the time of his life. Alec’s voice sounded so fucking perfect echoing in the bathroom, his fingers digging into Alec’s sides and Alec smiled because he loved the stretch, pressing his hot forehead against the cold wall and he nodded, looking around and he gave Magnus a playful smile. ‘’Losing your stamina back there?’’ asked Alec playfully, squeezing around Magnus on purpose and the other groaned, biting into his lower lip and he just grinned back.

‘’Fucking tease,’’ said Magnus, giving Alec’s cheek a little slap and then he thrusted into Alec roughly, Alec laughing and moaning out in agreement both at the same time. Magnus glanced down, watching his dick disappearing into Alec’s hot and greedy hole, deciding to pick up the pace a little bit. Alec truly was something else - he did not break that easily indeed and he loved giving and receiving it hard and fast.  _ Magnus loved that as well,  _ pushing himself even deeper inside and Alec arched his back because Magnus hit directly onto his prostate and his low moan made Magnus’ cock twitch inside of Alec.

‘’Fuck, fuck,  _ fuck, _ that’s so good, right there, don’t stop, Magnus, keep going, keep going,’’ was chanting Alec out, saying Magnus’ name out like a prayer and Magnus loved the way his name sounded on Alec’s lips, especially when the other was screaming out in sheer ecstasy like that. It did wonders for him and he wrapped his arms around Alec’s chest, pulling him up against him and Alec cursed because he almost lost balance, but Magnus managed to catch him.  _ Shower sex was tricky indeed, but so worth it.  _

‘’Like this,’’ said Magnus and placed his hand over Alec’s, that was still holding onto the wall. He kept his other over Alec’s chest, holding him up so that they didn’t fall. Alec loved Magnus’ hand over his chest and he wished that he could somehow feel Magnus even closer, though given the situation and the position they were in, he didn’t know how that would be even possible. Still he reached back with his free hand and grabbed Magnus’ side, trying to feel him up even deeper inside, his eyes rolling into the back of his head and he leaned up against Magnus, titling his head back.

‘’Oh, so-so good and so deep,’’ moaned out Alec and loved it even though Magnus slowed down the pace a little bit. Going slower made him possible for him to give it  _ deeper _ to Alec and judging by how much he was moaning and trembling in his arms, he was pretty sure that the other loved it. Smiling, Magnus gently pressed a few kisses over Alec’s neck and then sank his teeth into the skin, gently sucking into a little mark and Alec hissed. ‘’O-oh,’’ he groaned and Magnus smiled. 

‘’Hope you don’t mind marks?’’

‘’O-oh, no it’s so f-fucking hot,’’ said Alec and then shook his head because he wasn’t going to last much longer. ‘’Magnus, I can’t much longer,’’ said Alec, shaking all over and Magnus nodded, because he felt the same - he wasn’t going to last much longer, Alec leaning forward against the wall again and Magnus reached down with his hand that was over Alec’s chest and wrapped his fingers around Alec’s neglected cock. ‘’Fuck, yes, yes,’’ was chanting Alec as he was thrusting back into Magnus’ palm and Magnus smiled into Alec’s shoulder.

‘’It’s okay, Alec, come for me,’’ said Magnus, whispering it like a dirty prayer into Alec’s ear and Alec tensed up, nodding, biting his lip hard and he came all over Magnus’ hand. Alec felt Magnus panting into his ear and Magnus followed him soon afterwards, Alec happily and proudly giggling. ‘’Oh, oh fuck, that was so good,’’ said Magnus, slowly pulling out of Alec and the other slowly turned around, his legs feeling wobbly, holding onto Magnus and then he leaned up against the wall and then took in a deep breath and huffed, still laughing.

‘’Needed that,’’ said Alec and Magnus grinned.

‘’Same, fucking hell,’’ said Magnus and then slowly let Alec go after he was sure that he was steady on his legs. ‘’You okay?’’ asked Magnus and Alec nodded. Oh, he was more than okay and he just huffed.

‘’Fucking starving though,’’ commented Alec, who would kill for a slice of that pizza that Magnus brought over before. Probably cold by then, but then again - cold pizza was just as good and he heard his stomach growling. Magnus chuckled and then he nodded. He was also starving as hell.

‘’Let’s get cleaned up and then let’s dig in,’’ said Magus, waggling his eyebrows.

* * *

‘’Two hours of a slideshow of their honeymoon,’’ groaned Alec and Magnus rolled his eyes.  _ Finally someone that got it!  _ ‘’I mean, am I an ass? Probably, but,’’ said Alec and then took a big bite of the pizza and smiled happily. Yep, cold pizza was even better and he was literally in heaven. Practically laying on the couch, Magnus sitting next to him and he just shook his head. ‘’Rubbing their happiness into my face,’’ he whined and stuck his tongue out and sighed sadly. ‘’I mean you could say that I’m kind of jealous, but-’’

‘’Don’t be,’’ said Magnus, shaking his head. ‘’Been married once and let me tell you. That honeymoon stage? It lasts a while, but it ends soon and then,’’ he said and groaned. ‘’Then real life hits you and it’s just horrible,’’ he said, staring at the slice of pizza in his hand and then he just shook his head. ‘’I mean, I hope that doesn’t happen to Jace and Biscuit, I like them, but I’m just being a realist,’’ said Magnus and Alec nodded.

‘’Totally feel you,’’ said Alec and Magnus pouted a little bit. 

Even though Magnus was okay at the moment, the wedding that he was currently working on was a disaster though. Unlike before, he and Camille didn’t agree on anything and he really didn’t understand the future bride why was it so important for her to get both of them working together. Yes, before their weddings were amazing, but it wasn’t going to be like that ever again and he just dreaded because in two weeks time he would have to be out of town again and he didn’t like it. At all. 

‘’At least their wedding was easy and a joy to plan,’’ said Magnus and Alec turned to him. ‘’This one right now… it’s making me miserable,’’ he whined and then took a big sip of beer and Alec snorted because apparently Magnus grew to like beer - or at least that was what it appeared when they were hanging out like that he just huffed. Magnus mentioned that he had to work with his ex, yes, and if he was him - he wouldn’t do it. It was true that it would be rude, but unlike Magnus, Alec truly didn’t give a shit. Then again Magnus was a people person and Alec was a people hater. 

‘’Still don’t know why you agreed to do it.’’

‘’Because I’m too nice and I can’t say no to people,’’ said Magnus and shook his head, looking down and he just groaned. ‘’I know, it’s annoying,’’ said Magnus and Alec clicked with his tongue.

‘’Not annoying, but,’’ said Alec. ‘’You should really learn when to say no because it feels great,’’ said Alec and Magnus laughed.

‘’Easy for you to say.’’

‘’I mean it, I can teach you if you want,’’ said Alec and Magnus arched a brow. Teach him what? How to be grumpy? Magnus started laughing loudly and Alec rolled his eyes and then looked away. ‘’Fine, then nothing,’’ he said and continued eating his pizza. Magnus apologised and then just shook his head. 

‘’No, you’re right,’’ said Magnus and then just sighed. ‘’But what can I say? I’m a giver,’’ said Magnus and Alec smirked.

‘’Yeah, you are,’’ he said, his eyes glowing.

‘’Alec, get your head of the gutter,’’ said Magnus, but continued laughing. Alec shrugged unapologetically and then reached over for his own bottle of beer and then took a few big sips of it and Magnus just sighed. ‘’Doesn’t matter, I’ll have to go there in two weeks again and see  _ her _ again, ugh,’’ said Magnus shook his head. ‘’Truly does suck,’’ he said and then continued eating his pizza - eating feelings away, it was a good technique of getting rid of bad feelings and Alec perked up.

‘’For how long?’’ asked Alec.

‘’Again five days,’’ said Magnus. ‘’Hopefully,’’ he added and Alec hummed.

‘’Need company?’’ asked Alec and Magnus laughed, thinking that Alec said it as a joke, when it reality Alec was pretty serious about it. He planned to take a time off for his ex and their romantic trip to Europe, but that went all down the drain, so he still had some extra days that he could use up and take days off. 

‘’It would be marvellous,’’ said Magnus, still joking and Alec then nodded.

‘’Good, I’m coming along,’’ said Alec. ‘’I need a break anyway, so it’ll do me good,’’ he decided and Magnus’ mouth hung over.

‘’Hold on - you were serious?’’ asked Magnus, shocked.

‘’Yeah,’’ said Alec, his mouth then full of food. ‘’Josh and I were supposed to be taking a romantic trip to Rome,’’ he said and then shook his head. ‘’But that got cancelled, so I have a few extra days saved up,’’ he said and shrugged again.  _ So he was being serious after all!  _ ‘’If you want company, I can tag along,’’ said Alec and Magnus just… blinked a few times. He didn't really know what to think of Alec's sudden proposition but it surely sounded a lot better than going alone and being stuck alone with her there. Still, wouldn't it be kind of weird and awkward? Yes, they weren't strangers anymore, but they also didn't really know all that much about each other. Magnus bit his lip and looked at Alec.

"You think it would be a good idea?" asked Magnus carefully and Alec shrugged because he didn't really understand why Magnus was looking into it so much. Magnus needed company. Alec needed some time off and he really didn't want to spend it alone. So, to him it made perfect sense that he would tag along. That is if Magnus would agree.

"I don't see why not?" asked Alec and shrugged. "I mean I need to leave the town for a little while or I'll literally go mad," said Alec and laughed. "And you said you don't wanna be alone, right?" asked Alec and Magnus nodded.

"I did… Say that."

"There you go," said Alec simply and Magnus hummed.

"Wouldn't it be too awkward?" asked Magnus and Alec whined and laughed at the same time. He really wasn't in the mood to be thinking so hard right then. His brain was literally mush - not that he complained, but still! Magnus was thinking too much about it.

"Magnus, stop thinking so much about it. I can't deal with it - you turned my brain into mush," said Alec and Magnus started laughing. "Look, I won't go if you don't want me there," said Alec and shrugged. "I just thought it could be fun. We could give each other a helping hand, so to speak," said Alec and was laughing at his own dirty pun. Alec truly was cute in his post-sex-state. Magnus laughed again.

"Don't we do that already?" asked Magnus and winked. "Besides I didn't say it's a bad idea," said Magnus and Alec raised his bottle of beer high into the air.

"I'm smart," said Alec and winked.

"For sure," said Magnus and laughed again. "Company would do me good, so you're welcome to join me," said Magnus and started laughing. "Besides I wanna see the look on Camille's face when I introduce you as my boyfriend," said Magnus and Alec glanced at him. "Taking it too far?" asked Magnus and normally Alec would say yes. But this was about revenge so he was totally game.

"Oh, I like it - revenge. Show her that you've improved," said Alec and clinked his beer bottle against Magnus'.

"Exactly - smart indeed," said Magnus and made a face as he swallowed the drink and Alec laughed again.

"Which hotel? I wanna book a good room," said Alec and Magnus shook his head.

"Oh I've got already one booked," said Magnus. "We can share, I don't mind."

"Nah, I'm getting my own room," said Alec, who was already fighting another smile. "I wouldn't want it to be too awkward and all of that," he said, cracking up. Magnus pressed his lips together and reached for the couch pillow and stuffed Alec's face with it.

"Smart ass," said Magnus playfully and Alec was just laughing. He was tempted to revenge himself, but the pillow was so far away and he just decided to stay in place. He sighed and tried not to smile. 

Hanging out with Magnus was fun!


	5. Chapter 5

“I have some wonderful news,” announced Alec. He was on his lunch break and he was meeting up with Izzy and Jace at their favourite local cafe, where they liked to get together once in a while when they all had the time and just chat. Not that Alec had much time for chatting, but still, he wanted to share the good news with his brother and sister - that he was taking a much needed time off in about two weeks and he was quite excited about it. For starters, he loved taking revenge - even if it wasn’t for his own personal gain. He related with Magnus on a very personal level. But also, he’s been working his ass off, slaving off long hours in his office to make the demon of his boss happy. So, finally, he was getting some time off and it was going to be amazing.  _ No evil boss to whine to him.  _ And since Magnus was going to be there, their fun could continue,  _ every single day.  _ Alec hummed happily and took a big sip of his cafe latte and Izzy and Jace looked at each other and then just waited for him to continue. “Not even gonna ask what it is?” pouted Alec. 

“Yes, man, we’re waiting,” said Jace and Izzy was just observing the side of Alec’s neck, where was a very visible bruise, proudly standing and Alec didn’t even bother hiding it. A little smile spread across her face; she had a feeling that the news was somehow connected with the person that Alec was ‘’seeing’’.  _ Well, she didn’t really know who the person was, but still!  _ Alec was seeing someone - no matter how he wanted to define their relationship - and it seemed that the person was making him happy. That was all that really mattered! “Tell us, come on, what’s the news?” asked Jace and Alec happily grinned all the way up to his ears.

“I’ll be leaving the town in two weeks,” said Alec and his eyes glowed, happily. “I’m going on personal vacation for a whole week,” he then said and breathed in happily. Jace’s eyes widened a little bit and Izzy hummed. “As you both know, I should be coming back from Rome right about now, but that got cancelled and since I have plenty days off still to use, why not?” asked Alec and shrugged it off. That was good news for sure! Jace could see how hard his brother has been working lately - mainly because he wanted to keep himself busy and not think about the break up, but still, he wished that Alec could take it easy and finally he was listening to his advice!

“That’s great, buddy,” said Jace happily and then he wondered about something. It wasn’t like Alec to go travelling alone. Yes, he was the type of person that like solitude, but Alec also got lonely soon if he was all on his own and that was why it was kind of weird. He probably was going with someone, but there wasn’t really anyone that Jace could think of that his brother could be going with. So he just had to ask! “Who are you going with?” asked Jace and Alec happily grinned again and hummed.

“Could it be with the person that gave you that?” finally asked Izzy, pointing to the love bite on Alec’s neck and Alec reached up with his hand and then finally remembered that he had that there. Maybe he should have hidden it, but then again, Magnus left it on such place that it was kind of hard to cover it up. It was too hot for a scarf, so- Jace glanced over to where Izzy was pointing to and his jaw dropped because he didn't even notice it until then. 

“Dude!” piped up Jace and Alec just started laughing. Unlike Izzy, he didn’t tell Jace about his  _ friend _ and he just kept smiling and Jace’s mind was wondering, many, many things. “You’ve got yourself a boyfriend while Clary and I were on our honeymoon?” asked Jace and narrowed his eyes. “And didn’t tell me?!” he shrieked and then glanced down sadly, then looked over to Izzy. The look on her face told him that Izzy knew and he pouted sadly. “I see that you’ve told Iz.”

“Not a boyfriend,” said Alec and Jace narrowed his eyes.

“Then?”

“Our brother has gotten himself a friend with benefits,” said Izzy and then shook her head. “Still not sure how smart that move was, but,” said Izzy and shrugged. “Well,” she said and the made a little pause. “Don’t look at me like that, I still don’t know who it is,” she said and Alec grinned because it was kind of fun to see Izzy and Jace trying to figure it out, but at the same time, Alec was going to tell them because he kind of wanted to show off that he had a hot friend with benefits! He was quite proud of himself and then he just took in a deep breath and then just shrugged. 

‘’I mean if he doesn’t wanna tell us, then it’s someone that we know,’’ said Jace and then pressed his lips together. Alec cracked up, but then he just nodded and Jace clasped his hands together and tried to think of anybody that Alec could possibly be interested in, but he didn’t quite get it. Yet. Alec was soon going to clear all of that confusion up and he just smiled because it was fun.

‘’It’s Magnus,’’ said Alec simply, as if it was no big deal and Jace nodded at first, but then he thought about it again he glanced up at Alec because there was only one Magnus that he thought. Izzy’s mouth hung open as well because that was something that she did not expect. She didn’t even know why, maybe because Alec never really brought him up? At least up until then and she just pressed her lips together.  _ But damn!  _ Magnus Bane was hot as hell and-

‘’My wedding planner?!’’ shrieked Jace and Alec nodded simply. Jace didn’t know if he should be impressed or not. Izzy, for one, was and she just raised her eyebrows high up and cleared her throat. ‘’You’re… how and when did that happen?’’ asked Jace and Izzy just started laughing because it would be pretty hilarious if the two of them starting hooking up at Jace’s own wedding.

‘’Your wedding,’’ said Alec simply and shrugged.  _ Izzy was right!  _ She started laughing because the look on Jace’s face was hilarious. ‘’It’s not fair that you were the only one to have fun, so,’’ he said and his eyes were glowing again. ‘’One thing lead to another - and we ended up hooking up,’’ he said and waved it off. ‘’He’s fucking amazing in bed,’’ said Alec and was drooling again. Jace quickly placed his hands on top of his ears - he really didn’t want to hear it. Not that he minded it too much, but Magnus was his friend and he really didn’t want to hear about that!

‘’Alec, I really don’t wanna know more about that!’’ whined Jace.

‘’Too bad, because I’m only getting started,’’ said Alec and Izzy was just cracking up because this was too good - for once Jace was the one being uncomfortable about oversharing about stuff like that. He had the tendency to tell very graphic details of…  _ well.  _ ‘’He’s fucking huge,’’ said Alec and Jace groaned.

‘’Please don’t,’’ whined Jace.

‘’ _ Really _ ?’’ asked Izzy.

‘’Oh, yes,’’ said Alec, his eyes glowing. ‘’I mean Josh could never,’’ he said, comparing him to the ex and Izzy grinned.  _ Good, Josh was a dick anyway.  _ Izzy knew Magnus a bit and he liked him, he seemed sweet and kind person. Also very good looking! Alec was lucky, damn! ‘’I mean Josh couldn’t carry on after one round, but Magnus, he can go at it, the stamina, fuck,’’ said Alec and Jace tried his best to tune him out. ‘’One Monday I couldn’t even sit-’’

‘’Alec!’’ groaned Jace.

‘’You’re no fun,’’ grumbled Alec under his breath and then he glanced over at Izzy, who was still laughing. This was hilarious. ‘’So, there, I’m going on vacation with him,’’ said Alec, nodding happily.  _ They were supposed to only be friends with benefits though, no?  _ ‘’And it’s gonna be marvellous,’’ he said and Izzy cleared her throat.

‘’How come?’’

‘’Ah, he’s travelling due to his work and this current client,’’ said Alec, shaking his head. ‘’Magnus said that she’s one of those Bridezillas - I’m so glad Clary wasn’t like that,’’ said Alec and then shuddered. ‘’So,’’ said Alec. ‘’The Bridezilla wants him to work with his ex - Camille?’’ asked Alec. ‘’And she’s like Josh, I can completely relate how much he hates it, so because I have a few extra days off, I thought that I could go and keep him company,’’ said Alec.

‘’Uh-huh,’’ said Izzy.  _ Alec wouldn’t just travel to completely another city for someone that he- _

‘’Don’t look at me like that,’’ said Alec, narrowing his eyes. ‘’It’s a nice thing to do - we are friends after all too,’’ said Alec and then nodded. ‘’So, I’m gonna be there and we’re gonna get revenge on his ex,’’ he said Alec and was already having fun, plotting revenge and Izzy nodded. She had her own opinion about the whole thing, but she decided to keep it to herself. For now.

* * *

Two weeks have passed and the dreaded time that Magnus really wasn’t looking forward to was there - he had to travel out of town and be stuck there again. He traveled one day earlier than Alec because he was called up sooner than he expected - apparently there was some mix up with the ordering of flowers because, of course, Camille did something without consulting him and he was already in a bad mood. And it was just one day since he has gotten there, grumbling under his breath. He tried his very best to avoid being stuck alone with Camille because that was just…  _ no.  _ He couldn’t deal with it and the only thing that was making him hopeful was Alec coming over that day. 

Alec was supposed to be over already, but there was still no sign of him and Magnus was just groaning because they were all supposed to meet up down at the hotel’s restaurant so that they could discuss things further and Magnus truly didn’t want to leave him hotel room. The witch was going to be there and he was just dreading going there. Just why did the Bridezilla have to be such an- Magnus didn’t want to say it, he wanted to be professional about his work, but it was just horrible. Ugh. Alec was right - he needed to learn when to say no or he was going to be driven mad one day. 

Still, because he was professional, he decided to hide how much he hated all of this and he put on a smile on his face as he was sitting in the restaurant. The bride to be was already there as was Camille - which was good. He didn’t have to deal with Camille all on his own and he was just trying his best to focus on the work aspect of it all, still wondering where in the world was Alec - weren’t they supposed to show up together there and show it to Camille?! Magnus was looking forward to it, but it seemed that it wasn’t going to happen. At least not that day and he just snapped out of it and then put on another smile, looking over at the bride and Camille was just glaring at him. 

‘’Like I said,’’ said Magnus. ‘’If we were all listening to my idea,’’ he said. ‘’None of this would have happened. I have already ordered the flowers, but then you Camille had to go ahead and change the order without telling me,’’ said Magnus through his teeth. Okay, maybe he couldn’t hide how annoyed he was, but frankly, he was hoping that the bride was going to catch on that it was a bad idea for them to be working together. But it didn’t appear that he was on the brighter side. 

‘’Yes,’’ said Camille. ‘’But I thought that the blue ones would have been a better choice than the white ones. I mean white is just too plain and our bride over here,’’ she said and glanced over at the woman, who beamed. ‘’Deserves more than that,’’ said Camille, and Magnus had a hard time at not snapping right there. Maybe blue was better, but that didn’t give Camille the right to just- Magnus took in a deep breath, again, and spoke up again.

‘’Perhaps that is correct,’’ said Magnus. ‘’I mean we do want the best for our bride here,’’ said Magnus. ‘’It is your special day after all,’’ he said and the woman happily nodded. ‘’But that didn’t give you the right to go ahead and completely change up the order,’’ he said. ‘’Now we have no flowers. Nothing,’’ said Magnus and then closed his portfolio because it was kind of pointless. They were getting nowhere like that. ‘’The wedding is in a month and we still don’t have-’’ he said and then just massaged his temples. ‘’At least tell me that you’ve gone ahead and arranged a meeting with the bakery like I’ve asked you to,’’ said Magnus. 

Silence. Magnus’ eyebrow twitched and he just glanced down. Silence meant that she didn’t do it and Magnus was really tempted to just throw the whole thing away. Call off the wedding. ‘’I thought that you were supposed to do it,’’ said Camille eventually and Magnus pressed his lips together.  _ No, they didn’t!  _ He had it all written down, in his notebook that Camille was taking care of that, but of course she didn’t! Instead of that she messed up the flower order. Fucking amazing. So they didn’t have planned shit. 

‘’You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,’’ said Magnus under his breath.

‘’Um, so what does that mean?’’ piped up the bride and Magnus glanced at her. He really needed to spell it out for her, huh?

‘’My dear darling,’’ said Magnus and he was praying that the lord was going to send him any kind of savour. He needed- ‘’That means that we’re behind our schedule,’’ said Magnus and the bride’s jaw dropped. ‘’Our Camille here messed up the flower order and now thanks to her we won’t even have the cake,’’ said Magnus. ‘’I mean way to go, Camille, I’m so impressed with you inability to-’’

‘’Now, now, Magnus, now’s no time to point fingers at-’’

‘’Yeah, I’m not taking the blame for this, you sort it out. My name’s on this wedding as well and if you mess it up, I swear to-’’ said Magnus and then reminded himself that he needed to be calm. ‘’Don’t worry,’’ said Magnus and looked at the worried bride. ‘’I’ll sort it all out, you can leave it to me,’’ he said and the woman finally relaxed. ‘’You’re in good hands,’’ he said. 

‘’There’s still time, yes?’’

‘’Yes, of course there is,’’ said Magnus.  _ Very, very little time.  _

Magnus looked over at the reception and his eyes widened. The restaurant was kind of far from reception, but it was still in within sight reach and he saw a very confused Alec standing there, checking his phone and Magnus’ phone buzzed, taking it out and he snorted when he saw that it was indeed him texting him that he had managed to reach the hotel. Magnus still had many questions to why it took him such a long time, but he was going to worry about it later. For now all that mattered was that Alec was there and the show could finally start.  _ Camille was soon going to be shocked!  _ And Magnus couldn’t wait to rub it into her face. 

Alec was supposed to be over at the hotel hours ago, but then he messed up the directions. He ended up giving the taxi driver the directions to the wrong hotel and, well, it took a while. Still, he was there and he was trying to check into the hotel, having all of his luggage next to him, but before he managed to even walk up to the reception desk, he heard someone calling out for him. ‘’Alec!’’ hollered Magnus and both Camille and the bride gave him a weirded out look. Magnus ignored them both and stood up. ‘’Alec, you’re finally here, angel, over here,’’ said Magnus, calling out sweetly out to him, adding such a nickname on purpose and Camille narrowed her eyes.

‘’Magnus, who are you talking to?’’ she asked and scoffed.

‘’My boyfriend, there he finally is,’’ said Magnus and stood up. 

‘’Boyfriend?!’’ asked Camille and turned her head to the direction that Magnus was walking to. The hotel was quite crowded, but the tall and dark one did catch her eyes. Though, Magnus could never get someone like him. Camille was still pretty convinced that she was the best that had happened to Magnus - Magnus was never going to find someone as attractive like her. But her jaw dropped right to the floor when Magnus approached right  _ that _ one and she just-

‘’Magnus!’’ piped up Alec, finally noticing Magnus. He was kind of weirded out by the sudden nickname that Magnus gave him, but then he noticed that Magnus wasn’t alone - he was in the company of two women and he figured that one of them was  _ Camille.  _ ‘’Babe, I missed you so much,’’ he said as loud as he could and Magnus snickered, walking over to him. ‘’That your ex over there?’’ whispered Alec and Magnus nodded.

‘’Yeah, the one in red,’’ whispered Magnus back and Alec looked over at him, looking up and down her and then he glanced back down at Magnus, who arched his brow. 

‘’Yeah, she seems evil,’’ said Alec and Magnus laughed softly. 

‘’Is she watching?’’ asked Magnus and Alec nodded.

‘’Oh, yeah,’’ said Alec and didn’t like the look on her face. Magnus smiled and then he had an idea, putting a hand up and he gently cupped Alec’s face. The other blinked a few times and Magnus smiled softly again.

‘’Kiss me,’’ said Magnus.

‘’Huh?’’

‘’Kiss me, she’s watching, right?’’ asked Magnus and Alec soon got it, grinning all the way up to his ears. They hadn’t really kissed apart from when they were hooking up and Alec inched closer to Magnus’ face. ‘’Sell it, make it last a little while,’’ he said and Alec nodded again, closing his eyes as their lips met halfway, Alec gasping a little bit because he didn’t expect Magnus to go in for it so…  _ gently. _

‘’Mmm,’’ hummed Alec, Magnus eventually pulling back and he licked across his lower lip. Alec gave him a smile and he then glanced over at Camille, who was just staring at them and she didn’t seem to impressed.  _ Good, the plan was already working!  _ ‘’Oh, she’s green with envy,’’ said Alec and Magnus cackled.

‘’Amazing,’’ said Magnus. ‘’Let’s go say hi to them, I want to introduce you,’’ he said.

‘’I still need to check in-’’

‘’Later,’’ said Magnus. 

‘’Okay then,’’ said Alec and then glanced over at Magnus. ‘’Hold my hand,’’ said Alec and Magnus perked up. Oh, right, act like a couple, that was amazing plan. He quickly reached down, linked their fingers together and guided Alec over to the table, beaming happily because Camille was fuming over there. But the bride was swooning over them.  _ At least someone had good taste!  _

‘’Everyone - meet Alec,’’ said Magnus once they were at the table and the bride to be happily introduced herself, looking over at Alec.  _ Oh, yes, she was definitely drooling.  _ ‘’He’s,’’ he said and then happily leaned up against him. ‘’Like I said, my boyfriend, he decided to join us. I mean, this place is so romantic and he wanted to see me work, isn’t that right?’’ asked Magnus and Alec smiled back.

‘’Yes, wanted to see my man in action,’’ purred Alec happily. ‘’Babe, you’re so amazing,’’ said Alec - was he forcing it too much? But it was kind of easy to play the role of a happy couple with Magnus. Also, it was fun! ‘’I mean isn’t he just so talented?’’ asked Alec and the bride nodded.

‘’Yes.’’

‘’Can we please get back to business?’’ asked Camille, snapping and Alec glanced down. He slid his hand down and he wrapped his arm around Magnus’ waist, making Camille even more jealous. ‘’This isn’t some sort of charade, we’re here-’’

‘’Ah,’’ said Magnus and waved it off. ‘’I think we can take a little break, huh? My boyfriend still needs to check himself into the hotel and I want him to settle in,’’ said Magnus and sighed happily as he looked into Alec’s eyes. ‘’And maybe we can continue this in the evening? I’ll make some calls and get the planning back on track. I mean it’s not like we’re getting anywhere like this,’’ said Magnus and glanced at Camille.

‘’I mean isn’t he just… ugh, don’t you just love him?’’ asked Alec and Magnus glanced over at him, feeling his cheeks redden a little bit. That kind of caught him surprised and he cleared his throat a little bit. Pulling himself back, he then just gently smiled and placed a kiss upon Alec’s cheek and Magnus’ client was just happily sighing as she was watching over the two of them - they seemed so happy and in love!

‘’Seems like a plan,’’ she finally said. ‘’I’ll let Roger know, I’ll make him come to the dinner and we can all just mingle,’’ she said and then glanced over at Camille. ‘’Oh,’’ she said. ‘’All of us will be coupled, you’ll the only one without-’’

‘’It’s  _ fine _ ,’’ hissed Camille. ‘’Besides, my  _ husband _ is busy, working. He can’t just pop in whenever he feels like it. Unlike some people, apparently,’’ she said. Oh, she was fucking bitter and Magnus was living for it. Alec didn’t even mind that Camille just assumed that he didn’t  _ work.  _ She was so obviously pissed off and he just glanced over at Magnus.

‘’So, let’s go to our room?’’

‘’Yes, angel, of course,’’ said Magnus and Camille almost gagged at the nickname.

* * *

‘’Oh my God, stop, Alec, I can’t-I can’t,’’ said Magnus, who was laughing way too hard. But it was just so hilarious. The two of them were in Alec’s room - which was just next to Magnus’ - and were laughing about the incident with Camille. That was just so satisfying and Magnus was living for it. ‘’The look on her face,’’ he said, shaking with laughter. Alec was laughing hard as well because this was just too much fun! Too much! ‘’She feels threatened.’’

‘’By who?  _ Me?! _ ’’ asked Alec in disbelief and Magnus nodded. ‘’Oh, she must really have a fragile ego,’’ said Alec.

‘’You have no idea,’’ said Magnus and then huffed under his breath. ‘’I’m not even mad that you showed up late. In fact, it was just perfect timing,’’ said Magnus and then finally calmed down a little bit.

‘’Yeah, sorry about that, I got lost,’’ said Alec. ‘’Gave wrong directions to the taxi driver,’’ said Alec and Magnus arched his brow.

‘’ _ How _ ?!’’ asked Magnus. ‘’You booked the hotel, you must have had the right-’’

‘’Magnus, I get lost even if I use Google maps, so please go easy on me,’’ whined Alec and Magnus started laughing again. ‘’I mean it, I’m the worst at following direction,’’ said Alec and Magnus chuckled. He learned another quirk about Alec and somehow it fit even though it was very odd. Alec was this collected businessman who was apparently crap at following simple directions.  _ Perfect.  _

‘’Okay,’’ said Magnus and then sighed, taking in a deep breath. ‘’All that matters is that you’re here and the fun can begin,’’ said Magnus and Alec waggled his eyebrows. ‘’This calls for a celebration,’’ said Magnus and Alec hummed in agreement. ‘’I’ll order us some cocktail - room service,’’ he said and waggled his eyebrows. ‘’It’s on me, this time,’’ he quickly said when he said that Alec was about to protest.

‘’Okay then,’’ said Alec and Magnus snorted. ‘’How can I refuse free drinks? I’m not a monster,’’ said Alec.

‘’Time for me to introduce you to some good drinks,’’ said Magnus and Alec rolled his eyes.

‘’Pssh, I’ll still stan beer,’’ said Alec.

‘’Ah, we will see about that,’’ said Magnus as he called up for the room service, ordering them the finest booze that the hotel had to offer and upon the arrival, Alec was still skeptical, but after taking one sip of it, he had to hand it to Magnus, it was quite… ‘’I know, right?’’ asked Magnus when he saw the look on Alec’s face.

‘’Fuck, this is good,’’ said Alec.

‘’Told ya’.’’

‘’Mm-hmm,’’ said Alec and then took in a deep breath. ‘’So, what’s the plan for the romantic dinner of two happy couples  _ plus _ poor, lonely Camille?’’ he asked and Magnus thought about it. There was no plan, he just-

‘’Let’s just appear to be so fluffy, lovey-dovey that it’ll melt Camille’s face off,’’ said Magnus and Alec laughed.

‘’Okay,’’ said Alec. ‘’Can do that, though, I’m very not good at it.’’

‘’Hmm?’’

‘’PDA,’’ said Alec and Magnus laughed.

‘’Oh? You seemed like a natural before,’’ said Magnus nodded. Yeah, it was kind of easy - probably because he was very comfortable around Magnus. They’ve done pretty much  _ everything _ together, so- 

‘’Very well,’’ said Alec and laughed. ‘’I’ll make Camille’s teeth rot with being all lovey-dovey,’’ he said and Magnus raised his glass up in the air and Alec did the same.

‘’To us and our evil plan,’’ said Magnus, and his eyes were glowing.

‘’To us and our evil plan,’’ said Alec, clinking his glass against Magnus’.

_ Oh the next few days were going to be so much fun!  _


	6. Chapter 6

It was the second day of the business trip (third one for Magnus) and Alec was having so much fun. Messing around with Camille was so much fun and the dinner that happened the previous evening was the best and the most satisfying thing that has happened to Magnus in a long time.  _ Camille was completely miserable.  _ She was the only one that was alone there and meanwhile Magnus and Alec were selling their story of their first meet, she was completely green with envy.  _ She was soon going to turn into the Wicked Witch of the West if she was going to continue at this pace!  _ At the moment, they were again at the venue and were checking things out, trying to decide on other details - for example how the tables of the guests were going to be set up as and of course Camille and Magnus were again clashing with their ideas.

Magnus managed to get the wedding planning back on track, with a few phone calls and he managed to settle everything back on track. He ordered the flowers, he also managed to call up the bakery and set up for a meeting. It was kind of fast, but because they knew Magnus was one of the best wedding planners out there and because they really wanted to work with him - after all, it was going to do wonders for their business - they decided to be on board and the next day, they were going to be tasting the samples for the wedding cake and the bride was beyond excited. Also, Alec was truly amazed when he saw Magnus in his  _ work _ mode - one was not to mess with him. It was hot as hell, also. 

Each table of guests was supposed to have flowers on them and now Camille and Magnus were arguing in which kind of vases they were going to be. The bride expressed the wish for something simple, yet elegant - they didn’t want the vase to completely outshine the flowers, but the choices that Camille was going for were, put it mildly, horrible, and Magnus really didn’t know where all of her good tastes went. It seemed that she abandoned them as soon as she left him and he just rolled his eyes. Alec was there as well and it was driving Camille crazy because she didn’t understand why that idiot had to be there, but the bride didn’t mind at all.  _ In fact, she was overjoyed when Alec decided to join them!  _

“Camille, for the love of all that’s holy, that is hideous,” said Magnus when he couldn’t keep up his professional self anymore and he just snapped. Magnus quickly cleared his throat and then put on a little smile. “I mean,” he said and then glanced over at the bride, who didn’t know what to really do at that point. Even she was realising that putting the two of them working together wasn’t a good idea after all and she was slowly regretting that choice. But she already paid both of them so- “I just think that someone more simple and maybe a bit of rustic look would be better choice,” he said, looking over at the bride and showed her his portfolio. “See? SOmething like this,” he said and the bride nodded.

Alec glanced down and he had to hand it to Magnus that it looked ten times better than that bejeweled crap that Camille was trying to sell to the bride. And he wasn’t being biased. At all. “Yes, I think that this looks pretty,” said the bride and Magnus smiled, looking back at Camille, whose face darkened because she was again being ignored and totally not in the centre of attention. The bride always picked his decisions - minus the flowers - and it was driving Camille crazy.

“Darling,” said Camille. “It is pretty, but I was thinking something more extra, you know? Because don’t you think you deserve that? This day is  _ your _ day, it’s your special day and you should take it,” said Camille, nodding. The bride nodded, but she really liked Magnus’ choice. Still, she wanted to hear her out and Magnus grumbled under his breath because it seemed that the bride was already second-guessing his choices.  _ Did she really have no backbone at all?!  _

“I mean, that is kind of true and all.”

“Yes,” said Camille happily and the smirk on her face pissed Magnus off even more. He was going to wipe it off once and for all. Magnus looked really annoyed and Alec decided that it was probably for him to step in and say something. He was there with a purpose and he didn’t like the way that Camille was putting Magnus down. Taking in a deep breath, he stepped forward and then hummed. Magnus arched his brow, because he didn’t really know what Alec was going to do, but he was kind of amused and Camille wrinkled her nose when Alec stepped closer. “What?” she asked rudely.

“If I may add something,” said Alec.

“No, you really can’t,” said Camille and the bride just nodded.

“Yes,” she piped up happily. It seemed that the good looks Alec possessed made her weak and it was good - Magnus liked it, because it was a way to win her over. Camille groaned and the bride shrugged. “I mean, it’s good if we hear more than just one opinion, right?” she asked and Alec smiled, nodding.

“Exactly,” said Magnus. “What did you have in mind, angel?” asked Magnus and Alec grinned. Good, the nicknames were back and he liked the way Camille looked away because unlike for Alec, he didn’t have any nicknames for her. Ugh. Alec gave him a little wink and he then just took in a deep breath.

“I think that you should go with Magnus’ choice,” said Alec and he put on a little smile. “I mean it’s more simple, yes? We don’t want the flowers to be in the back,” he said. “”I think less is more, besides, said Alec and took in a deep breath. Magnus was trying his best to hold his laughter because the way Alec was talking it made it almost believable that he knew what he was talking about, while in reality he was just lying his ass off. Alec knew shit about pots. 

“Exactly!”

“You’re just saying that because the two of you are together,” said Camille. “And given the circumstances of me being Magnus’ ex, of course-”

“Oh, you’re Magnus’ ex?” asked Alec and Camille’s jaw dropped. “Funny enough, he didn’t even mention you,” said Alec and Magnus was living for it all. The way Camille’s face turned from confusion, to anger, to humiliation. “My bad, then,” said Alec and raised his hands up. Camille was pissed - how come Magnus didn’t mention him that she was his ex?! That couldn’t be true, right? He truly moved on from someone as amazing as her?! Camille was-

Magnus was impressed on how Alec was good at this - lying and acting. He was a professional and Magnus was trying his best to keep up. “Well,” said Magnus and shrugged. “You kind of made me forget pretty much immediately. I mean you’re just so charming and kind and just, ah,” said Magnus and leaned up at Alec, who was now standing by his side, leaning up and he placed a kiss upon his lips.  _ The two of them had talked about it, they could kiss each other whenever they felt it would make Camille the most jealous!  _

“Ugh!”

“Right, let’s get back on track,” said Alec and then clasped his hands together. “I’m saying this from professional point of view,” said Alec and already knew how to completely get Camille to shut up. 

“ _ Professional, _ please don’t kid me,” said Camille and scoffed.

Alec narrowed his eyes and then folded his arms on top of his chest. “Is attending the University for the Creative Arts and graduating on top of my class not professional enough for you?” asked Alec seriously and Camille’s jaw dropped to the floor. “I mean, sure, but what do I know, huh?” asked Alec and then narrowed his eyes. “That overpriced crap that you’re trying to sell us, looks cheap as hell,” said Alec. “The art of minimalism is something you clearly don’t understand,” he carried on and Magnus’ mouth hung open - where did all of that come from? Alec actually knew things about-

“Artistic and handsome!” pointed it out the bride and Alec nodded.

“I… you always amaze me, Alexander, make me so.. ah,” he said and Alec’s eyes widened a little bit when Magnus called him by his full name and he was surprised to find out that he didn’t mind it!

“Fine,” shrieked Camille and closed her portfolio. “We’re going for those rustic ones then, ugh,” she said, marching away and Magnus was trying his best not to laugh too hard. Alec was pretty happy with him and he hummed happily. The bride followed Camille, trying to see if she was still going to work with them on other parts of the wedding. The boys were left alone and Magnus burst into loud laughter.

“That. Was. Amazing,” said Magnus as he was laughing.

“Thank you!”

“You actually-” he said and shook his head. “Know stuff about pottery?”

“Of course not,” said Alec and rolled his eyes. “I heard Clary studying once for her exams,” said Alec and shrugged. “This was just so fucking amazing, did you see her face?” whispered Alec and Magnus nodded.  _ Ah Magnus was so happy and excited that he could just-  _ he didn’t know but he was just! He was literally feeling floating from happiness. 

Magnus grabbed Alec’s face and then kissed him, Alec letting out a surprised yelp and he quickly pulled away - they were alone! “Sorry!” said Magnus and then wiped his lips. “I’m just so excited!” he said and Alec started laughing, not thinking of it too much and he just waggled his eyebrows. 

“I’m a pro,” said Alec and Magnus couldn’t disagree. 

* * *

It was the same day, a little bit after the lunch and Alec was in his room. He and Magnus had said their goodbyes to each other before and they were supposed to be just taking some time off for themselves in their room, to just relax, but Alec was bored out of his mind and he pressed his lips together. He checked his phone, texted a little bit with Jace and Izzy, but apart from that, he wanted to do  _ something.  _ He was in another town and he wanted to go around it a little bit - sightseeing, yes, but he wasn’t in the mood to do it alone. Maybe Magnus would be in the mood? But then again, he was there to get revenge on Camille and he still didn’t-  _ ugh.  _ But going alone would suck so much.

But also, would he be bothering Magnus if he asked him to go out with him just a little bit? It would be more fun that way for sure. Besides, as it has been established, he sucked so much with directions and it would be nice to have a guide with him. Also Magnus has visited the town before and he probably knew which place worth visiting. Biting into his lip, Alec slowly sat up onto the bed and decided that he was going to ask Magnus if he wanted to hang out a little bit - it wouldn’t be too weird, right? 

Nah, probably not. They were  _ friends _ after all and Magnus did say that the town had a lot of interesting attraction to go see. Also, Alec liked going sightseeing and he couldn’t imagine what else could Magnus be doing.  _ Probably planning the wedding, but he could still take some time off, right?  _ Alec decided that he was thinking way too hard - it was kind of annoying - and he just decided to go over to Magnus’ room and see if he was in the mood to hang out. If not, then he was going around the town alone. 

Dressing up, Alec took in a deep breath and then nodded, stepping out of his room. Just as he locked the door and was about to turn around and head over to Magnus’ room, he ended up running into someone - and that someone was nobody else than Magnus! Alec’s eyes widened a little bit and he huffed. ‘’Magnus!’’ shrieked Alec and Magnus laughed softly. It seemed that he startled Alec, huh?

‘’Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you,’’ laughed Magnus.

‘’No, no, it’s fun, I was just heading to your room,’’ said Alec and Magnus smiled. How funny, so was he! ‘’I was wondering if you’d like to hang out or something?’’ asked Alec and Magnus snorted. 

‘’I was kind of trying to do the same,’’ said Magnus and smiled softly. ‘’I was bored, so, yes, I’m totally up for it,’’ said Magnus and Alec nodded happily - good! ‘’Did you have something special in mind?’’ asked Magnus, winking. Honestly he didn’t know what Alec had in mind. It’s been a while since he and Alec did  _ it _ , so he thought that Alec had something like that in mind. Magnus up for anything, really. 

‘’I mean since we’re both here,’’ said Alec and Magnus nodded. ‘’I thought that maybe you could show me around the place? As you know I pretty much suck at travelling around on my own,’’ said Alec. ‘’So I thought that maybe it could be fun if we just went sightseeing?’’ asked Alec and Magnus was surprised, but not in a bad way. Usually Alec wanted to hang out just to do  _ it _ , which he did not dislike at all, but still! Magnus smiled and bit his lip, slowly nodding.

‘’Some fresh air would do be good as well,’’ said Magnus and Alec smiled all the way up to his ears. ‘’I’d be more than happy to show you around the place, there’s some pretty special places that we can visit?’’ asked Magnus and Alec nodded. He was so up for everything - it was just so nice to be out of New York and just enjoy the freedom. He didn’t feel this free in a long time and he extended out his arms and then nodded.

‘’Sounds good, yes,’’ said Alec. ‘’You lead the way, if I do, we’ll end up getting lost,’’ he mumbled under his breath and Magnus just laughed and nodded. He could do that, of course.

* * *

‘’You don’t how amazing it is to be out of town, change of scenery is fucking amazing,’’ said Alec and Magnus smiled. Oh, yes, he knew the feeling very much and he just leaned back. They were sitting on a bench of a park and were just chatting. They visited the local museum and art gallery. Alec was pretty much amazed by everything and now that their legs hurt like hell from walking around for the last few hours, they decided to sit down and just chat a little bit. They would have to soon go back to the hotel though, but until then, sitting in the park it was.

‘’Oh, I do know, Alec, I know,’’ said Magnus and hummed. ‘’It’s why I love this part of the job,’’ he said and then shook his head. ‘’I love travelling,’’ he said and Alec nodded. He loved to travel as well, but actually didn’t visit many places.

‘’Same,’’ said Alec. ‘’But I didn’t really travel a lot,’’ he said and shrugged. ‘’Sadly,’’ he added on and Magnus nodded. Yes, pity, maybe he could give Alec some recommendations where to go. ‘’Thanks for showing me around,’’ he added on and Magnus grinned.

‘’It’s the least I can do for what you’re willing to put up for me,’’ said Magnus and Alec snorted. ‘’I mean that performance today was totally Oscar worthy. Ever considered a career in acting?’’ asked Magnus playfully and Alec just rolled his eyes. ‘’I mean it, you’re a natural,’’ said Magnus.

‘’Ha, ha, very funny,’’ said Alec. ‘’But, it was fun,’’ said Alec and then clasped his hands together. ‘’Can I tag along to the bakery as well?’’ asked Alec. ‘’I mean it’s free cake and I can’t pass such an opportunity up!’’ said Alec and Magnus laughed, but then nodded. Of course Alec could tag along - after that show today, Alec was very much needed around. Even if only for emotional support.

‘’You’re more than welcome.’’

‘’Yay!’’ said Alec, cheering. ‘’I can tell you something - this trip is a lot more fun than the trip to Rome would be with Josh,’’ said Alec suddenly and Magnus arched a brow. Alec didn’t really talk a lot about his ex. 

‘’Yeah?’’ asked Magnus, amused.

‘’Yeah, fucker never was too keen on travelling around anyway, so even if we were in Rome, we wouldn’t leave the hotel room much,’’ said Alec and narrowed his eyes. ‘’I mean totally boring guy, that one,’’ said Alec and Magnus pouted.

‘’Then what’s the point of travelling abroad?’’ asked Magnus, shaking his head.

‘’I wonder too,’’ said Alec, shaking his head. ‘’Not that it matters,’’ said Alec and cackled. ‘’I’m having a lot of fun here,’’ he said and waggled his eyebrows. 

‘’Same here,’’ said Magnus and Alec gave him a little wink.  _ Speaking of fun, Magnus kind of wondered if Alec would maybe want to come over to his room after dinner?  _ ‘’Speaking of fun,’’ said Magnus and Alec glanced at him. ‘’How about after dinner,’’ he started and Alec already knew where Magnus was going with that. ‘’Maybe we could, you know-’’

‘’Oh, fuck, yes,’’ said Alec, his eyes glowing and Magnus grinned - it was double the fun then! Not only was he going to fuck around with Camille, he got to actually-  _ Nice.  _ ‘’And don’t worry, I got all the things we need - I came well prepared,’’ said Alec and Magnus started laughing because Alec wasn’t the only one.

‘’Same.’’

‘’Ah!’’ said Alec. ‘’Great minds think alike,’’ said Alec and Magnus just shook his head and laughed softly. 

* * *

‘’Holy fuck,’’ moaned Magnus, taking in a few deeps breaths in and Alec was proudly smiling behind him. They were in Magnus’ room, all sweaty, sticky and worn out, but it felt so, so good. Alec rolled off of Magnus, the other one facing the pillow and was trying to collect himself. Magnus slowly turned around as well and found Alec wiping himself up clean with the wipes that he had on his drawer, reaching for the water bottle and he took a few sips of it, groaning happily as he swallowed and Magnus whined. ‘’I need water too,’’ said Magnus and Alec threw the bottle into his direction. It landed on the bed and Magnus picked it up.

Alec wiped his mouth and then plopped back down on the bed. ‘’I’m spent,’’ Alec and then giggled happily. Magnus nodded and laid back down too. Alec had given it to him good and he was still enjoying the afterglow. ‘’Need wipes?’’

‘’Later,’’ said Magnus, shaking his head. ‘’I need a moment.’’

‘’Oh, yeah,’’ said Alec and then arched his back. ‘’Do you think others heard us?’’

‘’Huh?!’’ asked Magnus, horrified.

‘’You got pretty loud,’’ said Alec and Magnus blinked a few times.  _ Right, they were in the hotel and someone could… in the next rooms!  _ ‘’It was hot, don’t worry about it,’’ said Alec after he saw that Magnus realised what he was wondering. But then again, he was far too fucked out to actually care and he just waved it off.

‘’Don’t really care, yeah,’’ said Magnus and Alec cackled.

‘’So, the plan for tomorrow?’’

‘’Just trip to bakery,’’ said Magnus and Alec nodded.

‘’Yay, free cake,’’ said Alec and then hummed. ‘’Maybe,’’ he said and Magnus turned to him. ‘’Later we could go exploring around the town again?’’ suggested Alec and Magnus arched a brow -  _ exploring?  _

‘’The two of us?’’ teased Magnus and Alec nodded.

‘’Yes,’’ said Alec.

‘’Ah, you need a guide,’’ he said and grinned. 

‘’Yes and also it’s fun to hang out with you,’’ said Alec happily and Magnus felt his heart skip a bit for a split second and his eyes widened. Glancing down, he cleared his throat and then swallowed thickly.  _ It was just all because he was still in the post-sex state, that was all.  _ Also, he didn’t have many friends! ‘’No?’’ asked Alec innocently.

‘’Of course,’’ said Magnus and giggled. ‘’Let’s go… explore the town,’’ he said with a wink and Alec happily smiled - amazing!


	7. Chapter 7

“I hate cakes,” whined Alec and Magnus was laughing next to him. “I am never eating a piece of cake ever again. My poor stomach hates me,” he carried on and placed his hand over his stomach. The visit to the bakery was just over and it went without any bigger incidents. For once Camille and Magnus agreed on most things and the bride was overjoyed. Alec couldn’t disagree that when the two of them worked together, they were pretty good and because of that Alec got bored. There wasn’t much for him to do there, so he decided to try out different samples of cakes, and of course he tried all of them even though the bride was already done picking. He had continued eating away, not being able to stop because it was just too yummy and now he was suffering the consequences for his actions, whining again and he puffed his cheeks.

“I told you that you’ll be regretting it,” said Magnus and Alec just rolled his eyes and then whined again. His stomach felt heavy and he was miserable, but it was worth it. He hadn’t eaten such yummy cakes since forever and he decided to just enjoy it. If only his stomach wasn’t such a piece of shit, seriously! It wouldn’t allow him to be happy and Alec wrapped his arms around his stomach and then he grumbled under his breath. “It’ll pass, I’ll go get you a bottle of water,” said Magnus and Alec nodded.

The two of them were sitting in the back, near a vending machine and Alec smiled happily when Magnus handed him the water bottle and Alec hoped that it was going to work. “My stomach is a traitor,” whined Alec and made a few gulps, but he felt too full as it was and he didn’t want to make it worse. “I mean, sure, yes, it’s my fault, but my stomach should allow me to be happy for this once,” he groaned and Magnus went  _ aww.  _ In a very playful way and Alec glared at him. He didn’t appreciate Magnus laughing at him even though he knew that he didn’t mean it in a bad way. “Not once can I eat what I want,” he said sadly and he looked down. “This sucks!”

“Alec, considering how much cake you had, I’m amazed that you’re still being able to sit up,” said Magnus and Alec just groaned and then just leaned back against the bench and then took in a deep breath. Magnus gave him a little smile and then sighed - well, he did feel bad for him, but still, he should have known better, right? Alec was sulking there and he was just hating life and himself. He was a dumbass, but at least Magnus should have stopped him! If he was a good friend, then he should have been looking out for him! Did Alec really just decide that he was going to be blaming Magnus for his bad decisions? Yep, it was far easier pushing the blame onto someone else and he just opened his eyes and glanced at Magnus.

“You’re a very bad friend,” said Alec and Magnus cocked his head to the side because he didn’t understand what has he done wrong; maybe because he laughed at him before? Still, he did and go buy the water for him, so Magnus just crossed his legs and scowled at Alec, not really knowing where he was pointing the blame at, narrowing his eyes.

“What did I do?” asked Magnus.

“You should have stopped me,” said Alec and Magnus then started laughing when he realised that Alec was just being grumpy and not very serious about it. A little smile tugged on Alec’s lips as well, but then he shook his head and put on a very serious look once more. “I mean it, if you were a good friend, you would be looking out for me,” said Alec. “But you didn’t and you allowed me to eat all of the samples and now I’m suffering,” whined Alec and Magnus snorted. 

“Are you a kid?” asked Magnus.

“How dare you?” grumbled Alec and Magnus just laughed.

“I mean, I thought that you had a better self-control,” said Magnus and shrugged. “You’re a grown man, you should have known better,” said Magnus and Alec cracked his eyes open again and he narrowed his eyes.  _ Nope, Magnus was so very, very wrong.  _ Alec was weak around cakes, so how dared he?! Alec hummed and then shook his head and Magnus just snorted.

“You’re wrong,” said Alec.

“Apparently,” said Magnus.

“Yep,” said Alec and then made a little pause. “I turn into a five year old when I’m near sweets and need an adult supervision,” said Alec and Magnus smiled even more. Alec was again being adorable and Magnus just bit his lip. It was so easy to get along with Alec and he really liked how he didn’t take things too seriously even if he was being grumpy like he was being at the moment. Magnus sighed and then decided to poke a bit more fun at Alec and he scooted closer to him on the bench.

“Ah,” said Magnus and then tried not to laugh too much about what he was going to say and he wondered if Alec was going to send him to hell or not. “So, should I rub your tummy and make you feel better?” asked Magnus, holding back his laughter the best way that he possibly could and the look that Alec gave him was hilarious. Alec’s eyes darkened and he was about to complain - but that was what Magnus wanted, wasn’t it? To see his grumpy reaction. And because Alec was a little shit, he decided to give him a completely different reaction and he just nodded.

“Yes, that would be amazing,” said Alec suddenly and it was Magnus’ turn to be shocked.

“You say what now?”

“Gimme a tummy rub,” whined Alec and plopped his head on top of Magnus’ shoulder. Magnus froze up for a little bit, staring onto Alec’s face and he could see that Alec was peeking. He was about to pull back, but then he saw that Alec was checking up on his reaction and he quite soon was able to deduct that Alec was testing him and that he has figured it out that Magnus was just trying to get a reaction out of him. Magnus also didn’t want to give Alec the satisfaction of winning, though he didn’t even know what would he be a winner of. Still!

“Very well,” challenged him Magnus and placed his warm palm against Alec’s stomach and Alec’s eyes widened.  _ He didn’t expect Magnus to just!  _ Alec was about to say something, but Magnus’ warm palm felt amazing on his stomach, gently circling around and he just plopped his head back onto Magnus’ shoulder and scooted even closer to him. Magnus was surprised, but then he could see that Alec was enjoying himself over there and a soft smile spread across his face.

“Mmm,” purred Alec and Magnus bit his lip, feeling Alec’s hot breath tickle against his skin of his neck. “That actually feels very nice, don’t stop,” mumbled Alec and Magnus smiled back and his smile didn’t disappear for a second.

“Truly a kid,” joked Magnus and Alec didn’t even mind it. “How about we take a little walk?” asked Magnus and Alec hummed and shrugged. He didn’t mind just sitting there for a little longer. He was feeling relaxed and just- “Walking it off usually helps, also, aren’t we supposed to be researching the town, today?” asked Magnus softly and Alec nodded because he knew that Magnus had a point. Also, he wanted to see around the town, so he eventually got himself together and nodded.

“Yeah, let’s do that,” said Alec. “Need to walk off all of the consumed sugar,” said Alec in the end and Magnus just grinned and bit his lip.  _ Seemed like a good plan to do!  _

* * *

“I like it here, it seems like time passes by slower in this town,” said Alec and Magnus nodded. He had the same opinion about it - as much as he loved New York, it truly did seem that sometimes the time passed by way too quickly and it was sipping away. But here it was calmer and slower. Then again, thought Alec, that might have seemed like that because it was just a little vacation time for him - it wasn’t supposed to last and maybe that was why it felt like that. Still, he was glad that he got to unwind and he didn’t miss his job at all, taking in a deep breath and then he turned around, facing Magnus, who grinned.

“How’s your tummy?” asked Magnus and Alec snorted.

“I’m fine, I’m fine, it’s all okay now,” he said because honestly he was feeling a lot better. It was the combination of that  _ tummy rub  _ that Magnus gave him and walking around the beautiful city. Still, he didn’t regret eating all of that cake! It was worth all the pain even though he was hating himself just an hour or so earlier. “It’s pity the vacay will soon be running out - at least for me,” complained Alec because it was Wednesday and he was supposed to be leaving on Friday. “You’re staying longer, right?”

Magnus nodded, rolling his eyes. “Yeah, I’ll be staying until next Wednesday,” said Magnus. “All left alone with Camille I will be,” he said and then he glanced down, but being alone with Camille wasn’t that horrible anymore since she got to show her that he was doing much better than her! “Leaving on Friday, huh?” asked Magnus and Alec nodded, pouting. “Well, you can always stay for the whole weekend,” suggested Magnus and Alec glanced at him.

“I did think about it,” said Alec, but shrugged. “You sure I wouldn’t be in the way? I mean you’re not meeting with Camille then, right?” asked Alec and Magnus gave him a look of disbelief. “Also, you said you’d be planning things, spending two days in your hotel room, so it sounded to me like you’ll be busy and-”

“Nah,” said Magnus.

“Nah?”

“You won’t be in the way,” said Magnus and shrugged. “Stay for the weekend, I mean,” said Magnus. “It’s pretty boring to be planning things all alone, but if I have some company, it could be fun,” said Magnus and winked a little bit because Alec knew exactly what kind of a fun Magnus was referring to and he just laughed and then nodded.

“Okay, then,” said Alec and hummed in delight. “I’ll be staying a couple of days longer then,’’ said Alec and smiled, sighing happily.  _ Though that would also probably mean getting on Monday, but he didn’t really care.  _ Alec was just happily smiling and to him two days extra meant a lot. He was going to make sure to enjoy them to the fullest and he just snickered a little bit and looked over at Magnus, who stopped by the fountain that was standing in the middle of the town and Alec smiled. It looked beautiful indeed and he took out his phone, snapping a few pictures of it, deciding to send them over to Izzy and Jace - he has been doing that a lot, actually. Sending them pictures of his sightseeing because, yes, he wanted to show off just a little bit.

‘’Very stunning, isn’t it?’’ asked Magnus, looking at the fountain and Alec nodded. Indeed, it was very pretty and he bit his lip, happily sighing and suddenly Alec had another wish - he wanted to take a picture with Magnus together. Since they were on a trip together, it would be kind of stupid not to snap a fic pictures of themselves, right? 

‘’Let’s take a photo together,’’ said Alec happily and Magnus perked up a little bit, but he quickly nodded in agreement, because that sounded like a good idea. Magnus loved taking pictures a lot, so why not? ‘’I want us to be on it, but at the same time, I want the fountain to be visible in the back as well,’’ commented Alec and then decided that asking someone to take a photo of them would be the most wisest idea that there was. So, he made it his own personal mission to find someone that would be willing to do so and soon enough, a young woman passed by them and Alec quickly waltzed over to her and Magnus was just smiling, waiting there for Alec to come back.

Alec handed his phone to her and then he went quickly back to Magnus, who was just smiling and he wrapped an arm around Magnus’ shoulders and pulled him closer, both of them smiling and doing a few different funny poses as the girl took a few photos of her. A bit later, both of them were sitting by the fountain and were checking out the photos - they quite liked it. ‘’Oh, I look good on this one,’’ said Magnus, pointing to himself and Alec just rolled his eyes and gave him a look. ‘’Now what?’’

‘’Nothing,’’ laughed Alec and scrolled through the rest of them. Those looked pretty good! Alec didn’t like photos of himself too much, so the fact that he liked them was a miracle, really. Smiling, he then glanced over to Magnus, who was posing again. ‘’Just what in the world are you doing now?’’ asked Alec, laughing on top of his lungs and Magnus stuck out his tongue.

‘’I thought that maybe you could take a few pics of me,’’ said Magnus. ‘’I wanna show off to my friends,’’ he said and then sighed sadly. ‘’But if you don’t wanna be a good friend, then nothing, I’ll-’’

‘’Oh, my God, such a drama queen,’’ said Alec and rolled his eyes. ‘’Get your ass back over there, I’ll take a few pictures of you, I will,’’ he said and Magnus happily hopped over to the fountain again and Alec stood up. His smile grew a he saw Magnus getting ready for his photo shoo and he couldn’t stop smiling because the way he was sitting over there and waiting was just so…  _ adorable.  _ Alec quickly shook his head and took in a deep breath.  _ Just what was he thinking?  _ Then again there was nothing wrong with finding your friend cute, it was just not too big of a deal? But Alec’s cheeks were feeling kind of warm and he-

‘’Gonna just stand there or will you finally start snapping pics?’’ whined Magnus and Alec finally snapped out of it, quickly opening up his camera on the phone and he nodded. ‘’Finally,’’ he said and smiled. Alec cleared his throat and then nodded, pushing those annoying feelings that he couldn’t explain away. ‘’Better make me look good,’’ said Magnus, jokingly and Alec just rolled his eyes. Again. But in a fond ayw and Magnus started laughing. ‘’Chop, chop, mister photographer,’’ said Magnus and Alec pouted.

‘’You’re not paying me enough - so much demands, I can’t work in such a stressful environment,’’ joked Alec and Magnus continued laughing. 

‘’I know a way or two how to make your  _ hard _ work worth it,’’ said Magnus slyly and Alec gulped.  _ Oh, Magnus did know how to do that!  _ Needless to say, Alec was very focused after that! And all of the photos that he took of Magnus were  _ amazing,  _ then again, could Magnus look  _ not _ good in any circumstance? Probably not. But that was something that Alec decided to keep to himself. He didn’t want to come off as too… creepy. 

* * *

‘’Oh, fuck,’’ said Magnus as Alec pushed him inside of his hotel room, pinning him against the wall and his lips immediately fell onto Magnus’ neck. He has learned that neck was Magnus’ weak spot and it was just so freaking hot. Gently sucking on the exposed skin, Alec slipped his fingers under Magnus’ shirt, who happily groaned and he placed his hands onto Alec’s ass and he pressed him closer. He needed Alec and he needed him right there and then. Moaning along, his hands came back up to Alec’s back and he was trying to get off the shirt, wanting to feel Alec’s skin against his, head spinning as Alec finally pulled back and he gasped.

Alec spun Magnus around and he pinned him against the wall again, careful that Magnus didn’t hit the wall too hard, but still firm enough and Magnus smiled. He felt Alec’s fingers in his hair, pulling his head back, turning it around and he kissed Magnus sloppily as he pushed his hips against Magnus’ ass and got back a very responsive moan and a groan. Alec was already hard, pushing up against him and he giggled.  _ Maybe he got a bit too handsy in the taxi.  _ But he couldn’t resist. 

‘’I want it against the wall,’’ gasped Magnus and Alec smiled.

‘’Against the wall,’’ he confirmed and continued pushing his hips up against Magnus, making the other grow hard with anticipation and lust, pushing his ass back as he tried to get more contact and Alec was smiling, but it was getting hard for him to keep his composure as it was. All he wanted was to be buried inside of Magnus. Slam into him right there, make sure that the next room was going to hear all of the thumping and moaning and- Alec groaned and pulled back just a little bit, trying to get his pants off, but then his phone started ringing and he groaned.

‘’Alec, your phone-’’ gasped Magnus, but his voice trailed off and Alec shook his head.

‘’Leave it,’’ said Alec. ‘’I have much more important things to do now,’’ he said and Magnus smiled.  _ Him, that was.  _ Magnus pushed back up against his crotch again and Alec reached forward. ‘’I see you’re hard too already, hmm?’’ purred Alec into Magnus’ ear and Magnus just gulped, nodding.  _ Fuck, of course he was!  _

That fucking phone was getting on his nerves, because as it stopped ringing, it started ringing again and Alec gritted his teeth, trying to stay in the mood, but as it started ringing for the third time in a row, he snapped his eyes open and the mood was pretty much gone.  _ Fucker, whoever decided to ruin their fun.  _ It could be something important - related to work. But still - it was his vacation. Alec groaned and Magnus huffed under his breath.

‘’Ugh, gonna get that?’’ whined Magnus and Alec sighed sadly.

‘’Sorry, could be important,’’ said Alec and his eyes darkened when he saw the name of his secretary written on his phone.  _ Fucking great, it was related to work, just as he expected.  _ He hated it, he hated it so much, yet he needed to pick it up, taking in a deep breath, tucking the shirt back into his pants and then he sat down onto the edge of the bed and decided not to snap at Underhill for calling.  _ It wasn’t his fault, it wasn’t his fault,  _ was what Alec kept telling himself, almost like a mantra. ‘’Yes?’’ whined Alec when he picked up and Magnus snorted when he was listening to Alec talk on the phone. ‘’I’m on vacation, tell Imogen to fuck off,’’ he said, but then quickly pressed his lips together.  _ Oh, crap, he hoped that he wasn’t on speaker.  _ It wouldn’t be the first time, but it would be the first time for him to be heard cursing at Imogen like that. 

‘’ _ Sorry to be disturbing, _ ’’ said the voice on the other side of the phone call.  _ ‘’Just calling to ask you where you put the files for the Penhallow case? They called in, they are prepared to work with us, so I’ll be needing those papers earlier _ ,’’ he said and Alec could sense the apologetic tone of his voice and he huffed under his breath and just took in a deep breath and shook his head. Of course Penhallows decided to the terms of their agreement when he was on vacation. Of fucking course! Gritting his teeth, he mouthed a  _ I’m sorry _ to Magnus and then went into his work mode. But he wasn’t going to be staying in his work mode for too long, or he’d be telling Imogen that he-

‘’They really had to agree when I’m on vacation, huh?’’ grumbled Alec and sighed. 

‘’ _ Yep, it’s how this crap usually is _ ,’’ said Underhill. ‘’ _ Didn’t want to disturb because I know how annoying it is, but Imogen left me with no choice,’’  _ he said.  _ ‘’Just tell me where those are and I’ll be on my merry way, _ ’’ he promised and Alec snorted and then plopped onto the bed next to Magnus and face-palmed himself.

‘’On my computer,’’ huffed Alec. ‘’But they’re not finished yet,’’ said Alec. ‘’Boss promised that the deal wasn’t happening any time soon and we’ve been fishing for them for years, so who fucking knew,’’ he said. ‘’I kind of… got drowned in other work and never got to finishing that crap,’’ he said and then shook his head. ‘’Now what? I’m not ending my vacation early just for them,’’ he grumbled.

_ ‘’Lucky for you, boss, you have a very capable secretary _ ,’’ said Underhill.

‘’Smartass, I told you I’m not your boss,’’ said Alec and rolled his eyes. ‘’Doesn’t matter,’’ he said and then took in a deep breath. ‘’So, what did you have in mind?’’

‘’ _ I can finish it, I’ll just need your presence over the phone call _ ,’’ said Underhill. 

‘’Fine,’’ groaned Alec and then muted his speaker for a little while so that he could tell Magnus about the current situation. ‘’It’ll take longer than I expected,’’ moaned Alec out in misery and Magnus waved it off. 

‘’It’s okay, I’ll wait here,’’ he said because he already had something else in mind - updating his social media account and his eyes were happily glowing. Alec excused himself again and Magnus got to work, but he kept watching Alec with one eye - it was quite hot to see such a change.  _ In that office mode, he was dom- _ Magnus took in a deep breath and then glanced down. Right, he needed to make Camille even more jealous because she was still following him on social media and for one he knew that she was still probably avidly keeping up with his posts.

Alec had forwarded the photos from before to him and now he was going to be uploading them on his site.  _ Not those of Alec, of course not, he didn’t have his consent!  _ But those that Alec took of him with a very juicy caption  **_my angel took these, doesn’t he have a good eye for taking photos? So talented, so amazing. Love you so much, literally the best human being <3 _ ** And of course the likes and comments started coming in almost immediately, snickering and he was having a very good time there on his own.

After around an hour or so, Alec was also done with going things over with Underhill and he was back, turning off his phone after that and he felt free again, looking over at Magnus, who was laughing and snickering. He was having a lot of fun, curious, leaning over and he figured it out pretty much soon away. ‘’That’s what you’ve been doing for the past hour?’’ asked Alec and Magnus nodded.

‘’Look at this,’’ said Magnus. ‘’After I posted my first post, Camille soon posted her own post about her  _ boo _ ,’’ he said and rolled his eyes. ‘’Then I made another post and she did the same thing, trying to outdo me, but it ain’t working,’’ said Magnus and was laughing, Alec grinning and he then pouted. Magnus posted pictures of himself, but not him!

‘’Aw, why not share pictures of us from before too?’’

‘’Oh, I didn’t wanna put your picture on my profile without you asking first,’’ said Magnus. ‘’But if you’re game, I’m so posting one,’’ he said and then went through his camera roll. ‘’Hmm, which one, which one,’’ he asked as he was thinking out loud and a little grin spread across Alec’s lips.

‘’How about one of us kissing right here?’’ suggested Alec and Magnus grinned all the way up to his ears - it was intimate, romantic and perfect. 

‘’You are a genius,’’ announced Magnus happily and already got his phone ready to start taking new pictures. ‘’Okay, so how are we doing this?’’ asked Magnus. ‘’You lean in and I’ll snap,’’ said Magnus, positioning his arm up, trying to get a good angle and Alec nodded. ‘’Oh, wait, I’ll set up a timer for a perfect frame,’’ he said and Alec just laughed, but sure, why not. ‘’Okay, bring it on,’’ said Magnus and Alec took in a deep breath and slowly eased in. He glanced up at the camera, nodding and Magnus nodded back.

Magnus felt Alec gently hugging his chin, turning his face to him and he just went in for it, their lips meeting halfway and even though all that Alec had to do was place his lips against Magnus, he kissed him properly, making Magnus let out a little gasp, still holding his hand up. The timer was set to ten seconds, but those ten seconds didn’t seem to be passing quickly enough and Magnus’ heart started beating much faster and he shuddered softly. The way that Alec was holding his face made his heart flutter and before he knew it, he was kissing Alec back. Magnus kissed Alec back, the clicking sound of camera finally being heard, but Alec didn’t pull away.

Still holding Magnus, Alec reached up and placed the phone down next to them, cupping Magnus’ face and he kissed him again. The kiss was different from other times - it wasn’t filled with hunger or lust, it was just… a kiss. Alec wanted more and Magnus gave him more, kissing him back eagerly, both of them gasping softly into the kiss, lips moving together as one and it was Alec that finally snapped back to his senses and he pulled back.  _ Fuck, what just happened?!  _ Kissing Magnus felt amazing and he-

‘’Did, you, um, like, get the, um, picture?’’ asked Alec, voice shaking and it took Magnus a little while for him to come back to his senses. 

_ Picture, what picture?  _

Oh, right! 

Picture!

Grabbing the phone, Magnus quickly cleared his throat and nodded. Yep, the picture was there, but his soul still didn’t return. ‘’I-I, yep, it turned out good,’’ said Magnus, cheeks red and heart racing. ‘’Let’s, um, let’s post it,’’ said Magnus and Alec just nodded. Typing in silence, Magnus posted the picture and he could already picture Camille very clearly fuming with anger and jealousy.

Alec was cackling, but his laughter died out when Magnus glanced up at him and they quickly looked away, Alec feeling his cheeks redden just a little bit… Biting his lip, Alec took in a deep breath and stood up. Magnus looked up, cocking his head to the side. ‘’I need some air,’’ said Alec. ‘’I’ll go for, um, run to clear up my mind a little bit,’’ said Alec and Magnus nodded. Yep, he needed that too, being there in the room was messing with his mind. 

‘’Can I come along?’’ asked Magnus. ‘’Being stuck inside is making me feel all weird,’’ said Magnus, trying to make a joke of what has just happened and Alec quickly nodded -  _ yes, let’s go with that!  _

_ Alec knew it wasn’t wise, but-  _ ‘’Duh, going alone is boring,’’ said Alec and Magnus cheered up even more.

‘’Great! I’ll go change into my room and I’ll meet you in like five minutes,’’ said Magnus and Alec nodded, waving to Magnus as he ran into his room.

Running out was going to clear his mind, Alec was sure! It was just like Magnus said - being stuck inside made him feel… weird.

But not in a bad way. 


	8. Chapter 8

‘’Okay, okay,’’ said Alec and his eyes were glowing. It was Friday and he and Magnus were again in the town park, sitting on what has become _their_ bench by that time and were playing an interesting game - _would you rather._ It was pretty stupid, but at least it was a good way to pass the time as they were waiting for Camille and the future bride show up because they were going to be visiting the flower shop to discuss more details about the bride’s bouquet. Other flower arrangements were already prepared and organised, this was the last thing that they were still missing and Magnus smiled happily and waited for Alec to present him with the new choice. ‘’Round six,’’ announced Alec and Magnus just nodded, trying not to laugh too much. ‘’So who would you rather - Tom Ellis or Tom Hiddleston?’’ asked Alec and Magnus started laughing.

‘’You’re a monster, Alec, how do you expect me to choose?’’ whined Magnus and Alec started laughing, rubbing his palms together and he was silently laughing. It was an evil laughter, perhaps? He was such a dork sometimes and Magnus just shook his head. He liked that about him, it made hanging out with him a lot more fun. ‘’And what’s with you and British actors?’’ asked Magnus because that was the round six of the game and so far all of the choices Alec has presented him with was the British cast. Alec shrugged it off and then he just sighed happily.

‘’I just like the accent,’’ sighed Alec, a dreamy look on his face and Magnus couldn’t disagree with that. ‘’Okay, don’t stall and tell me who you choose,’’ said Alec and then glanced at Magnus, who started thinking again it, but it was just so _hard._ ‘’So?’’ asked Alec and grinned all the way up to his ears - cheeky, that he was and he knew it, didn’t he? ‘’Just what is your choice going to be, Magnus?’’ asked Alec and noticed that the other was again drooling, trying to choose. ‘’Come on, pick already,’’ whined Alec. Magnus was always needing a lot of time to pick one and Magnus snorted.

‘’Okay,’’ said Magnus. ‘’Then why don’t you choose?’’ asked teased him Magnus and it was Alec’s turn to go all speechless and he frowned, tapping his mouth with his finger and he then hummed. Okay, yes, Magnus maybe had a point. ‘’There, you see, it’s literally impossible to choose - you’re too good at this game,’’ said Magnus and Alec rolled his eyes. He was going to prove to Magnus that he was wrong - he could pick! Maybe was it because he was kind of really competitive? Probably, but Alec took in a deep breath and then finally stood his ground, placing his arms on top of his chest.

‘’Hiddleston,’’ said Alec firmly and Magnus arched a brow because he could tell that Alec wasn’t so sure. ‘’But then again-’’ he said and Magnus was just laughing because Alec was having a monologue with himself and Magnus just shook his head. Oh, this was too funny and his laughter grew out of control because in the end Alec finally admitted it that the choice that he gave was too difficult. ‘’Ugh, i’m bored,’’ announced Alec and then checked the time - weren’t they supposed to be there already? Magnus huffed and then checked up on his phone. They were both running late alright, but he got no texts or missed calls, rubbing the back of his neck and groaned.

‘’Yeah, they’re late,’’ said Magnus and Alec clicked with his tongue. ‘’Maybe we should give them a call,’’ he said and then decided to call the bride - of course not Camille, he wasn’t stupid. They could plan things without her, like he literally gave zero fucks about it. Alec nodded and Magnus then called her and took in a deep breath after the phone call was done. ‘’Yeah, they’re coming,’’ he said and Alec pouted sadly. Pity, he wished that they wouldn’t be coming because then he and Magnus could be spending some more alone time. His eyes widened a little bit and he quickly shook his head. He was again thinking weirdly and he just gritted his teeth. ‘’You seem in a bad mood, suddenly,’’ said Magnus. 

‘’Oh, I’m not,’’ said Alec, trying to play it off and he just laughed nervously. ‘’I just, um,’’ he said and shrugged. ‘’I really don’t like it when people are late, that’s all,’’ he said, trying not to show how much he actually it bothered him that their time alone was soon going to be coming to and end. But then again, Magnus was on business trip, so it wasn’t like he could just cancel it all for him. Also, they could spend more alone time later on in the day and just- _Yep, he was being ridiculous._

Biting into his lip, Alec finally cracked a smile and Magnus gave him a little nod. ‘’Yeah, I know what you mean,’’ said Magnus and then huffed under his breath. ‘’But when you’re in this business you kind of have to get used to it,’’ he said, rolling his eyes. ‘’They’ll be here soon enough, until then let’s just sit here on our bench and just enjoy the sun,’’ said Magnus and happily smiled. A little smile spread across Alec’s lips as well and he nodded - that sounded like a wonderful idea. 

‘’Our bench, huh?’’ joked Alec and Magnus opened his eyes and looked at him, his cheeks reddening a little bit; was that too weird? The way he said it? Their eyes met and Magnus quickly looked away and then bit his lip. Ugh, he didn’t like it, moments like this were happening more and more and he didn’t like it how awkward things were at times. Magnus liked his friendship with Alec just because of that; because things weren’t awkward or weird about them, but now it was somehow changing and he didn’t like it. 

‘’Yeah, I mean we’re kind of sitting on it every time we come here, no?’’ said Magnus and was somewhat stumbling over his word and he puffed his cheeks. ‘’I know, I’m super weird,’’ said Magnus, laughing awkwardly and Alec just snorted and then nodded. Magnus gave him an offended look.

‘’But in a very good way,’’ said Alec and then happily extended out his arms. ‘’Yeah, let’s enjoy the sun on our bench,’’ said Alec and was still laughing because he could see that Magnus was kind of annoyed, though he didn’t really know why he would be. It was kind of cute, if Alec was being completely honest. Magnus just snorted, but smiled in the end and happily leaned back. Ah, yes, sunshine was shining brightly, but soon Camille and bride came. Also, that time, the future husband to be also decided to join them and their little moment was over.

But the smile didn’t disappear from Magnus’ lips.

* * *

“ _Ah, so you will be staying there for two whole days extra just because you want to keep Magnus company?_ ” asked the voice on the other side of the phone call and Alec narrowed his eyes. He was chatting with his sisters over the phone and he didn’t get why she was being so weird about it. Yes, he literally told her that just a moment ago, so why was she asking it like that and make it a big deal when it really wasn’t? It was logical, he had two extra days so why come home to New York when he could enjoy the city and vacation for a little longer. Izzy chuckled and Alec narrowed his eyes a little bit and he pouted.

“Yes,” said Alec and then made a pause. “You’re literally repeating what I’ve just told you,” said Alec and then sat onto his bed. He was in his room. Maybe calling Izzy wasn’t a good idea and he just frowned because he didn’t get where in the world she was going off with that. It was driving him insane and he just tried his best not to say too much. “I mean I don’t get it,” he then said and he heard Izzy giggling on the other side of the phone call and he rolled his eyes. “Iz, why are you making it so weird?”

“ _It’s just, don’t you think that maybe you’re,_ ” she started, but then her voice trailed off and she decided to go with another approach - maybe he was going to get it like that? She still couldn’t believe that he was that dense, because to her it was pretty clear that Alec liked Magnus more than he wanted to admit it. Also, she saw the pictures that Magnus posted online and she was just… she had many questions. Sure, Alec claimed that it was all to make Camille jealous, but was it?

“I’m what, Iz?” asked Alec impatiently and Izzy just chuckled again and Alec could already see the look on her face and he just rolled his eyes again. Why wouldn’t she just say what was on her mind already?! Izzy was trying her best to come up with the best thing to say to her brother, but she didn’t know what more to do or say - it really wasn’t obvious where she was going with it?! 

“ _I mean,_ ” she said and Alec arched his brow. “ _I mean staying there longer will make Magnus happy, right?_ ” she asked and then she wanted to ask more thing, but Alec interrupted her and scoffed and clicked with his tongue and he just shook his head. Yeah, well, what was supposed to happen?!

“I mean, duh,” said Alec. “He’s not gonna be unhappy about it, is he? We’re friends, so of course if a friend decides to stay around longer, one is gonna be happy about it? I seriously don’t get it what you’re trying to tell me,” said Alec and shook his head. “You’re being all weird about it, I don’t like it,” said Alec and then narrowed his eyes because he heard Izzy laughing on the other side of the phone call and he gritted his teeth. “Stop laughing, I’m annoyed,” said Alec and Izzy quickly decided to stop because she didn’t want Alec to feel angry. That wasn’t what she wanted, she just wanted Alec to open his eyes and see what was really happening. 

They didn’t really talk much about for the past few days, they mostly texted and Alec did text a lot about Magnus - it was always _Magnus this and Magnus that._ It seemed that all that Alec could talk about was Magnus, which she didn’t mind, but she wasn’t so sure if he was aware of the fact that it seemed that things were slowly changing and that… maybe, there were more strings attached than he would like to admit? Izzy didn’t really know how to say and she just huffed and sighed. It was amazing how smart Alec was, yet he was this dense in times like this.

“ _So, um, I saw the picture on Magnus’ Instagram,_ ” said Izzy and Alec grinned happily and he then pressed his lips together. Part of him was extremely happy about it because the next day - yesterday - Camille was pissed off even more and she was trying really hard to insert her husband into the conversation, but it wasn’t really working. Alec knew that Izzy and the others were following Magnus - he was Jace’s wedding planner after all and he honestly didn’t think too much of it when Magnus posted the photo, but now he was kind of faced with the fact that he should have thought more about it. Jace has also texted him many times, saying that he had many questions, but Alec hardly answered any of those. 

But at the same time, as he thought about that moment, his heart started beating faster and he just shook his head, pushing those feelings away and he just cleared his throat and then decided to make a perfectly rational excuse to Izzy about it. “Yeah,” said Alec and then started laughing. “It was to Magnus’ ex jealous and let me just say that it worked perfectly. She was so pissed yesterday and she was trying her best to show off her own husband, but let me just tell you that it so didn’t work,” said Alec proudly. “We totally showed her down and I don’t wanna brag, but we’re so much better than her and her husband,” said Alec and then took in a deep breath. 

Izzy started laughing as well - did he even realise what he was saying? Camille and her _husband._ So, what was he trying to say? “ _Ah, I’m happy for the two of you, but don’t you think that you’re maybe taking things just a little-_ ” started Isabelle, finally deciding to ask Alec about his feelings for Magnus - it couldn’t just be friendship anymore. But just as she was about to ask, there was a knock at the door and Alec stood up.

“Iz, hold on a sec, there’s someone at the door,” said Alec and Izzy stopped talking. Alec hurried over to the door, opening it up and he smiled when he saw Magnus. “Oh, it’s Magnus,” he said happily and Izzy was about to speak up again, but Magnus looked pretty stressed and Alec needed to-

“ _So, as I was saying-_ ”

“Can I call later?” asked Alec and Izzy pressed her lips together. “I really gotta go, I’m so sorry, I promise I’ll call you later, but Magnus needs me now,” said Alec and Izzy was smiling on the other side of the phone call. Yep, there was so much more than just friendship and she was happy about it. She just hoped that Magnus felt the same way because another heartbreak was the last thing that she wanted for Alec. 

“ _Okay, talk to you later._ ”

“Later, then, bye, Iz,” said Alec and finally ended the phone call and then opened the door wider for Magnus, inviting him inside of his room and Magnus truly was all over the place. The main reason for that was because Camille has invited him for a dinner and apparently, her new husband was coming. And that was because he was just feeling completely shitty. Of course he agreed to the fucking dinner because he didn’t want to give her the satisfaction of winning. Besides, he said that he and Alec would be completely delighted about it. Still, he felt horrible about it because a) he truly wasn't in the mood to be spending time with Camille and her husband and b) he didn’t ask Alec before agreeing to coming to the dinner and he was just-

“Alec, it’s terrible,” said Magnus, biting on his nails and Alec raised a brow.

“What happened?”

“Camille invited us to a dinner and her husband is coming as well,” grumbled Magnus and then shook his head and walked past Alec, sitting onto his bed and Alec arched his brow, but then quickly hurried over to his side and sat onto the bed next to him. “I’m sorry, I told her that we’re both coming, but I completely understand if you don’t want to come. I wasn’t even thinking about it, it was completely rude of me, I just panicked and of course I just agreed that-”

“Okay, Magnus, you worry completely too much,” said Alec and then placed his hands on top of Magnus’ shoulders and Magnus finally stopped talking, looking into his eyes and he just nodded. Okay, yes, he was probably panicking too much, but still going onto the dinner with a man that replaced him and was better than him, apparently, was something that made Magnus completely uneasy. Just what was she trying to do? What was Camille’s agenda? Nothing nice, probably. Magnus didn’t like it, but if he wouldn’t agree to it, then she would win. And that- “Of course I’d like to come, going there alone is just _no_ ,” said Alec and Magnus nodded.

“Still, I should have asked.”

“Don’t worry about that, I don’t mind it at all,” said Alec softly. “You sure it’s a good idea, though? I mean to go?”

“No, of course not. But if I don’t go then she would win,” said Magnus and then frowned. “Though I don’t know what exactly she would win, but I’m sure that there would be something and she-she wouldn’t stop rubbing it into my face, so I can’t give her that,” said Magnus and then groaned. “Just what the fuck is she planning to do?” whined Magnus and shook his head. 

“Oh, it’s pretty simple,” said Alec and Magnus looked at him. “The way I see it - she is just very jealous about seeing that picture of us kissing and she just wants to show off her hubby,” said Alec and rolled his eyes. “She tried that yesterday, but it didn’t work, so she decided that go with a more hands on approach,” said Alec and then scoffed. “Pretty pathetic if you ask me, but whatever,” said Alec and Magnus nodded. Yep, that sounded pretty spot on. But still - she had more than that in her plan.

“That and to make me feel like shit again,” said Magnus and huffed under his breath. “I can’t believe that after all this time I still allow her to have such a big impact on me,” whined Magnus and Alec just shook his head and gave him a little smile. 

“Okay, first of all - it’s completely understandable, you spent many years with years, right?” asked Alec and Magnus nodded. “So, of course it takes time, but also,” he said and then made a little pause. “This time I’m here, so you’ll see, it’ll be okay. The witch won’t make you feel like shit again because I won’t let her,” said Alec softly and Magnus gave him a little smile and nodded. He was really happy to have such a good and supportive friend like Alec. 

“It’s good you decided to stay a bit longer,” said Magnus softly.

“Don’t mention it,” said Alec and winked.

“Thank you, you’re a really good friend,” said Magnus and Alec just smiled, nodding. 

Yeah, he really was, wasn’t he?

* * *

‘’Scott, darling, tell them how much do you make in a year again?’’ asked Camille very loudly and Alec just rolled his eyes. Magnus did as well and he was having a very hard time as he was trying to keep the food down. It was just coming up - the whole thing was such a shit show and even Scott over there didn’t like what this has turned into. It wasn’t a dinner, but it was just Camille trying to prove just how better Scott was than Alec and neither of them neither of them was up for it. 

‘’Camille, I think you told them that. Three times already,’’ he grumbled under his breath and then glanced over at her and shook his head. Magnus was in awe - not even he was in the mood for it. The thing was - just like Camille, Scott wasn’t a good person. So the fact that he wasn’t in the mood just spoke volumes of how horrible Camille was being. ‘’I mean seriously, why did you make me fly all the way here? Just for this crap?’’ whispered Scott, but the other two could hear them and they were trying their best not to laugh. But it was hilarious to hear them bicker and then high fived each other under the table. _And they didn’t even have to do anything!_

‘’I just want them to know how hard working you are,’’ chirped Camille.

‘’Oh, I think I’m gonna be sick,’’ said Alec and Magnus bit his lip and Camille glared at him. 

‘’Must be hard when your wife is turning you into her own personal cash cow,’’ said Alec and Magnus choked on his food next to him. _Alec really was forward, wasn’t he?_ ‘’No offense,’’ said Alec and Scott was a bit stunned, saying something under his breath, but he just kept eating in silence. Magnus could see it written all over his face that he didn’t want to be there - neither of them wanted to. Camille’s face was red with anger, but then she took in a deep breath and cleared her throat.

‘’Just trying to save up the money,’’ said Camille and Magnus scoffed. ‘’Like I said - Scott and I will be starting a family,’’ she said and then glanced over at Magnus. That hurt the last time and it hurt this time as well, his lips twitching a little bit and he looked down. Alec quickly looked at him and he quickly reached over to his hand under the table and placed his hand over Magnus’, linking their fingers together and Magnus glanced over at him, his eyes widening a little bit and he smiled softly. _Alec was so supportive._

‘’Congratulations,’’ said Magnus bitterly. 

‘’By the way, we already have all the names planned out, don’t we Scotty?’’ asked Camille and Scott poured himself another glass of wine. ‘’Okay, so, if it’s gonna be a girl, she’ll be called Rebecca,’’ she said and happily sighed. Magnus’ lip twitched and Camille noticed even that. Alec didn’t like the look on her face. She was purely saying of that to hurt Magnus. ‘’And for a boy - Stephen,’’ she said happily. 

‘’That’s nice,’’ grumbled Magnus and tried not to think of it too much. It was stupid anyway, there was no point in getting upset. Magnus then glanced over at Scott and when he saw how miserable he looked, he was suddenly in a lot better mood - he definitely dodged a bullet and he snorted. 

‘’Scotty, I’ll just jump over to the ladies’ room, I’ll be back soon,’’ said Camille, kissed Scott’s cheek and then hurried over to the toilet. Once alone, Scott leaned back in his chair and took in a deep breath. Alec and Magnus looked at each other - oh, he looked completely out of it. Magnus snorted and then he leaned forward, the other glancing at him and he just kept looking down. The last time he saw Magnus was in the courtroom and it was kind of awkward. 

‘’I guess I should be thanking you,’’ said Magnus and was trying his best not to laugh. ‘’I mean, dude, no offense, but you look miserable,’’ said Magnus. Scott didn’t say much and Magnus wasn’t even bothered by the whole thing. Maybe this dinner was what he needed to finally and properly move on from their past relationship. 

‘’It’s a lot,’’ whispered Scott and his eyes travelled travelled to the toilets. She still wasn’t back - good! 

‘’So much for the happily married couple image,’’ snorted Alec and then just gave an unapologetic shrug as he grabbed his own wine glass and emptied it. Scott glanced at him and then he looked back at Magnus and he just sighed again. ‘’I mean we can put on a better act and we’re not even together,’’ whispered Alec into Magnus’ ear, making sure that the other didn’t hear it. Magnus giggled and Scott whined. They looked so happy. 

‘’Karma’s a bitch, Alec,’’ whispered Magnus back.

‘’Oh, God, she’s coming back,’’ whispered Scott and looked like he wanted to run away. 

‘’I’m back, love, missed me?’’

‘’Mm, very,’’ forced it out Scott. 

‘’Scott, we had a deal,’’ hissed Camille and Alec snorted.

‘’Sorry, Camille, but your man looks miserable,’’ said Magnus and Camille looked up. ‘’I mean-’’

‘’Such a rude thing to say,’’ said Camille. ‘’You’re just bitter because Scott is obviously so much better than you. Unlike you, he makes me happy,’’ said Camille and it didn’t even hurt Magnus because now that he saw how miserable her husband was, he was… _amused._ And so, so over it. But, on the other hand, what she said bothered someone else at the table.

‘’Shut up,’’ grumbled Alec. ‘’Magnus is fucking amazing so shut up, you witch, I mean seriously nobody asked for your opinion. Magnus is the best and I love him a lot more than you ever did, so sit back, eat your salad and keep your stupid opinions to yourself,’’ said Alec and Camille’s eyes widened. 

Magnus was laughing again, but his heart was beating way too, too fast for his liking. _The way Alec said that he loved him… it almost sounded real._


	9. Chapter 9

“Underhill, can’t we just cancel Mondays?” whined Alec because being in his office was the last place that he wanted to be at, but he was very much needed to be there. The Penhallows were going to be coming to their company and Alec was just trying his best to survive. Being back in New York made him realise just how much reality sucked. He would be much rather back with Magnus in that fantasy - that town was amazing and he wanted to visit it soon. But, nope, adult life sucked and he needed to be back there, slaving off and he was indeed in the most terrible mood that he possibly could be in. 

“I wouldn’t be opposed to that, boss,” said Underhill and Alec straightened himself up and narrowed his eyes - at that point he was doing this on purpose, right? He had told him more than once that he wasn’t his boss and he didn’t like to be called like that. It made him feel that their friendship was solely business-kind, when it wasn’t and Alec crossed his arms on top of his chest and he just whined again. “Yes?” asked Underhill.

“I told you that you should call me by my name, I’m not your boss,” whined Alec and then he shook his head. “At least you have some common sense,” he said and he wrinkled his nose. “Everyone is so cold in this company, so I need some human interaction,” said Alec and Underhill snorted and then he apologised. Right, Alec did tell him that more than on one occasion, but he was just trying to be polite.  _ And technically, Alec was his boss as he was his secretary,  _ but it didn’t really seem to matter to Alec. 

It was still pretty early into the day, Alec had just gotten to work and he was having his first morning of the day with Underhill in his office and was just trying his best to think of a way to survive this day. “How was the, um, the trip?” asked Underhill and Alec glanced at him and then he sighed happily and pressed his lips together and was feeling sad again. He wanted to be back there, in the hotel, in his precious hotel room and just enjoy time with Magnus and the freedom that he has been given. It was so quickly taken away from him, how rude! He sighed and then opened his mouth.

“Too good, wanna go back,” said Alec and then just clicked with his tongue. “Lucky Magnus that he’s still there,” he said, grumpy as hell and he just shook his head. Underhill perked up a little bit at the mention of the name. It wasn’t the first time that he had heard the name, but he didn’t want to pry too much about it. Still, he was curious and he just needed to ask about it.

“Boyfriend?” asked Underhill curiously and Alec laughed.

“No,” said Alec and then shook his head. “It’s just… he’s just a friend,” said Alec and Underhill hummed and then nodded. “He had this business thing that he had to attend and because I needed a little time off, I also decided to tag along,” said Alec and shrugged. “So, yeah, we went to this little town and it was amazing. There was no annoying people that would nag me about work, it was just,” he said. “The life there is really different. It’s a lot slower and I wanna go back,” whined Alec and pouted a little bit. “It’s not fair,” he said and Underhill snorted.

“Oh, I understand you so much,” said Underhill and shook his head. “It was a mess while you were away around here,” said Underhill and rolled his eyes. “It’s like nobody can do their job correct, ugh,” he said and Alec nodded. Yeah, that was because it was usually Alec doing all of their job, that was why it all collapsed while he was away and he didn’t even wanna know how much work has piled on in just a week that he has been away. He was just not in the mood for any of that and he pressed his lips, sadly looking towards the huge pile of files and he glanced at Underhill.

“Are these all-”

“Yep,” said Underhill and Alec wanted to cry. “I went through some of them already,” said Underhill and for a second, Alec could swear that Underhill over there has gained a halo and a pair of angel wings in his eyes and his eyes lit up. 

“You’re an angel,” said Alec and Underhill started laughing.

“Not really.”

“Yes, yes you are,” said Alec and felt a little bit better. At least he didn’t have to do  _ all _ of those. That was an improvement. “And when’s the meeting with the Penhallows?” asked Alec, not looking forward to it at all. Not that he didn’t want to seal the deal, but Imogen was going to be there too and it was just going to be a lot. Just seeing his boss made him feel like shit and he just wasn’t up for it.  _ He was hoping and begging that it was at least after the lunch break because at least like that he was going to have some strength to deal with all of it.  _

“3 pm,” said Underhill.

“Oh, thank God,” said Alec and then took in a deep breath. “Okay, yeah, let’s just get started then I guess,” said Alec and Underhill nodded. That meant that morning coffee time was over and they both had to be productive members of society, which he didn’t like too much, but who did really? Alec took in a deep breath and looked up to the sky - he was going to need all of the help that he could get.

* * *

“Alec,” said Izzy, desperate to get Alec’s attention, but Alec was busy texting and she was just laughing and shaking her head. And she already knew who her brother was texting - it was Magnus, wasn’t it? The two of them had met up for lunch time, but Alec wasn’t really talking a lot and he cleared her throat and made Alec look up, who narrowed his eyes because he didn’t get what was happening. “Finally,” she said and giggled. “Your eyes are glued to your phone,” she said and smiled. “Texting someone special?” she asked and winked. Alec smiled and shook his head.

“Just Magnus,” said Alec and Izzy laughed.

“ _ Just  _ Magnus,” said Izzy and Alec narrowed his eyes - there was that look on her face that he didn’t understand and didn’t like. Why were they all making it so weird?! “So, how is Magnus doing?” asked Izzy and perked up a little bit. “He’s still there, right?” she asked and Alec nodded.

“Yep, I envy him so much,” whined Alec. “I wanna go back there,” he whined. “Later we have a meeting with Penhallows and I so don’t wanna be there,” he whined and his phone buzzed again, his eyes quickly travelling over to the phone, but because he didn’t want Izzy to get too weird about it again, he decided to ignore Magnus’ text for a while. Though he wanted to reply back to him pretty much immediately, but he had self-control and he was going to wait. “And how have you been, Iz?” asked Alec, but his eyes were on the phone and Izzy was just shaking her head.  _ And yet he claimed that they were just only friends?!  _

“Oh, I’m pretty good, nothing out of the ordinary happened,” said Izzy and shrugged. Alec nodded, but was still looking at his phone, impatient tapping against the floor with his foot and Izzy just snorted. “You know I don’t really mind it if you’re texting Magnus, text him back,” said Izzy and Alec looked up at her and scoffed, trying to play it off cool, but his heart was hammering against his ribcage, because his phone buzzed  _ again _ and he-

“Nah, I’m fine, I can-”

“Alec,” said Izzy. “You’ll end up throwing everything off the table,” said Izzy because Alec’s knee was kind of hitting the bottom of the table and she just shook her head. “Reply to him already, you’re making  _ me _ nervous about it.”

“Okay, yes, I’ll be quick, I promise!”

“Sure,” said Izzy and laughed again. Alec grabbed his phone and opened up Magnus’ text.  _ Two  _ texts. 

**Magnus:** Today sucks pretty much. It’s a day off for me and I have literally nothing to do. I’m bored as hell. It’s such a pity that you had to go back, we could walk around the town like we usually did. I kinda miss you.

**Magnus:** Like not in a weird way. But you know, as a friend. I miss you like that. 

Alec arched his brow and then nodded.  _ Uh, huh.  _ That was kind of oddly specific? Still, the fact that Magnus missed him made Alec’s heart flutter just a little bit and the smile was back on his lips, sighing happily and he just hit the reply button. He missed Magnus too, so he should tell him right? But he needed to be chill about it, he didn’t want to be weird about it and he just tried to keep it casual in his response.

**Alec:** Yep, Mondays are evil and they suck. Miss you too, would be very happy if I was there so that we could explore more parts of the town. Hanging out with you is fun.

Alec hit the send button and then his cheeks reddened a little bit - was it too much? Did he made it sound like he cared too much? Though he didn’t want Magnus to think that he didn’t care, but maybe it was still too much? Alec was thinking too hard about it and he was just… ugh. He didn’t like it. Izzy was just sitting there and watching everything - the smile, the look, the happy sigh… it was all there. All signs that Alec was head over heels for Magnus, yet he still wouldn’t admit it? Dense dork. 

Alec was panicking - Magnus didn’t reply. Why didn’t he reply? Did he say too much. Oh, God, he totally said too much, didn’t he? Alec groaned and then shook his head. He was crap when it came to stuff like that and he just decided to drop the phone down, but then it buzzed again and he quickly grabbed it, reading Magnus’ reply and the response that he got was a blushing emoji and he blinked a few times and he took in a deep breath. What did that mean? Then Magnus sent another text.

**Magnus:** I like hanging out with you too.

Alec smiled and sighed again. Izzy snorted and Alec looked up at her. “You’re so head over heels for Magnus,” she finally said it out loud and Alec narrowed his eyes and then quickly shook his head, though his heart was pounding, his cheeks red and he just shook his head. Again.

“Iz, we’re just friends with benefits,” said Alec, but didn’t know who he was trying to convince more - himself or Izzy. He was just afraid that if he would allow himself to think it was more than that that it would be all over? 

“Whatever you say,” said Izzy and lifted her hands up.

* * *

The meeting with Penhallows went by a lot better than Alec expected, mainly because he kept texting Magnus for almost the entire time, but he also made sure that he listened to all of the main points of the meeting and he was in a quite a good mood, but also tired. He wanted to go home, but he still had an hour or so to be stuck in his office and he was just scrolling through different websites because there was nothing else that he was in the mood to be doing. It was true that he still had more work, but at the same time, it could wait for the next day and that was what he decided to do. At least for the time being.

“Ugh, these are all stupid,” said Alec and rolled his eyes. He was reading news, but even the news were kind of boring and dull. He wanted entertainment and he decided to do one of his guilty pleasures and those were random internet quizzes. They were stupid, he knew that much, but it was a good way to pass the time and he was scrolling among them, solving a few of them. And then one of them caught his attention. It was stupid, very stupid, but at the same time-

**Do you like him?**

Quizzes like this he used to solve when he was in highschool and it was just embarrassing, but he didn’t know what possessed him to click on it. Maybe it was himself trying to prove to himself that he didn’t like Magnus in that way? That they were just friends? Probably. He was going to prove it to himself and the proof that he was going to have was the internet quiz? Alec flushed, but decided not to think about the specifics and he just decided to the quiz while he was alone.

_ Are you friends with him? _

“What kind of stupid question is this?” scoffed Alec and rolled his eyes, clicking on the  _ yes _ option and continued. 

_ How often do you guys talk? _

“These questions are pathetic,” said Alec. This was just… you could talk to your friend on daily basis, but he still picked the everyday option. At least lately they’ve talked on daily basis, but like… what kind of friends didn’t do that? “Okay next. Do you find yourself paying attention to what he says?” read Alec and then scoffed. “I mean, duh, I am a decent human being, so yeah,” said Alec, rolling his eyes. 

_ What types of things are you comfortable sharing with him? _

“Oh, you’ve gotta be kidding me,” he said, but then thought about it and, yeah, now he was pretty comfortable with sharing things with Magnus, so he clicked the  _ everything  _ option. “How often do you think about him?” read Alec and then he stopped for a second. How often did he think and talk about Magnus? That… a lot, actually.  _ Fuck, he thought about Magnus a lot!  _

_ Do you like it when he shares things about himself? Yes. _

_ Do you know the colour of his eyes? Yes. _

_ Do you like spending time with him? Yes.  _

Alec didn’t like this test anymore - it was getting too personal, but continued and then he was nervously waiting as the page loaded for the results of the test. “Why am I nervous? It’s just a stupid internet quiz, come on, Alec, stop it and-”

**You’re 100% into him. It’s not just a little crush, but you’re utterly and-**

Alec quickly closed his laptop because he didn’t want to read more. “Lies. It’s just about friendship and sex,” grumbled Alec and then huffed under his breath and rubbed his temples. Fighting it seemed easier than accepting it, even though deep inside he already knew how much he was actually…  _ ugh.  _

* * *

It was Tuesday evening and since Alec left, Magnus was counting the days of when he was finally going back to New York. It just wasn’t the same and he was just… well, tired, mainly because he was on his legs for the entire day and he was finally in his hotel room, locking himself inside and making sure that nobody was going to disturb him. But it wasn’t just that, there were more things that were on Magnus’ mind - since that day at the dinner with Camille and her husband, when Alec said that he loved him…  _ Magnus knew that it was a part of the whole pretending thing, but he kind of wished that it wasn’t just that?  _ Magnus had a lot on his mind and he just huffed. 

Magnus wasn’t stupid, he knew the feelings for Alec were there for a while now, but he decided to completely close off himself to that option - to actually admit it. Because a) it was supposed to be about no strings attached and b) he didn’t know how Alec actually thought about him. So lying to himself it was and he just huffed under his breath and looked around the room. Empty. Cold. Lonely. And he needed to take care about that, so he pulled out his phone and decided to call Alec. Alec had texted him before that he was finally home, so that gave Magnus the opportunity to call him a little bit. 

Alec was lying on his couch when he got Magnus’ phone call and he quickly picked up - it was a long day for him too, but now that he saw Magnus calling him, he felt a lot better.  _ Like a lot better.  _ ‘’Magnus, what a pleasant surprise!’’ piped Alec up and he was smiling wildly. He heard Magnus’ chuckle on the other side of the phone call and his smile only widened. He missed hearing Magnus’ voice, was what he discovered pretty soon!

‘’I’m not disturbing am I?’’ asked Magnus. 

‘’Not at all, what’s up?’’

‘’Not much. Just got back to my room and I’m bored as hell and well,’’ said Magnus and huffed under his breath. ‘’I decided to give you a call. That’s okay, right?’’ asked Magnus, feeling a little awkward about it and Alec’s little chuckle told him that it was completely okay. In fact, it was more than okay. 

‘’Of course it is,’’ said Alec. ‘’So, how did the meeting with the witch go?’’

Magnus laughed and then took in a deep breath. ‘’All was good, all was good,’’ said Magnus. ‘’Just very, very long,’’ he said and huffed. ‘’I’m glad it’s finally over. This wedding is just demanding. I mean, the bride is,’’ said Magnus and just groaned sadly. ‘’I can’t wait until the wedding and I can finally move on onto something simpler,’’ said Magnus. ‘’I’ll make sure I take some proper time off,’’ he complained and Alec smiled.

‘’Agreed,’’ said Alec.

‘’And your day? All good?’’

‘’More or less,’’ said Alec and shrugged. ‘’I’m back to slaving off in the office so, I guess everything’s back to normal,’’ said Alec sadly and then laughed. It was kind of funny, but also not and he just bit his lip. The nagging feeling was back - the feeling that he- ‘’So tomorrow you’re finally coming back?’’ asked Alec and Magnus nodded.

‘’Yep, can’t wait,’’ said Magnus.

‘’Oh, don’t,’’ said Alec. ‘’It’s horrible here, I wanna go back there,’’ said Alec.

‘’I feel ya,’’ said Magnus and Alec hummed. 

They chatted for a bit more, Alec keeping his eyes closed and was very focused on the sound of Magnus’ voice. It was kind of… maybe having an impact on him? It was a long, long day, but Alec- Alec’s mind was wandering places and he just… ‘’So, what are you doing right now?’’ asked Alec about twenty minutes into their call and Magnus hummed and then arched a brow.

‘’Lying on my bed?’’ asked Magnus.

_ Oh, lying on the bed!  _ ‘’Oh, cool, cool,’’ said Alec and then let his imagination explore a bit more and he liked what he saw in his mind. ‘’And are you, um, comfortable?’’ asked Alec softly, his voice kind of getting deeper and Magnus grinned as well. He knew Alec well enough by then to know where this was going and honestly he didn’t mind it one mind. It would be kind of amazing after the day he had and he just kept smiling, but was silent and he kept Alec guessing for a little longer and Alec pouted. ‘’Magnus, still there?’’ asked Alec and heard Magnus’ chuckle.

‘’I’m here,’’ said Magnus titled his head to the side a little bit. ‘’And I’m  _ very _ comfortable right now,’’ he added on and heard Alec’s little gasp. Yeah, there was shred of doubt in his mind about it - Alec was turned on and now that he was thinking about Alec being in his room,  _ turned on _ made him kind of- ‘’And what are you doing?’’ asked Magnus, clearing his throat and kept his voice steady. For now.

‘’Oh, just on the couch, lying as well,’’ said Alec and Magnus.

‘’The same couch I fucked you so hard the last time we’ve been in your apartment?’’ asked Magnus and Alec gasped.  _ Bingo.  _ ‘’Alec, are you still there?’’ asked Magnus and Alec just gave him a quick  _ yes.  _ ‘’Just, what are you trying to do?’’ he asked because he wanted Alec to say it even though they both knew it already. 

‘’Hearing your voice turns me on,’’ said Alec. He had no problems with telling Magnus what his body wanted, but not his heart. ‘’I’m sorry, was that weird?’’ he asked and Magnus just shook his head and he chuckled.

‘’Not at all,’’ said Magnus. 

‘’So, we’re really doing this? Over the phone?’’ asked Alec hopefully.

‘’If you’re up for it, I’m so game,’’ purred Magnus into the phone call and Alec gulped.  _ Fucking hell, yes!  _

‘’Yes, please,’’ gasped Alec and then spread his legs open a bit and he could hear Magnus’ slow breathing against his ear and he shuddered a little bit. ‘’I’m, uh,’’ said Alec and laughed breathlessly. ‘’I’m already kind of hard,’’ he said and placed his hand up against his cock and Magnus hummed - oh, someone was really pent up, but then again, so was he and he could feel his own cock throbbing for attention and he cupped himself through his pants and Alec carefully listened to what was going on Magnus’ side of the call.

‘’Mmm, getting there,’’ said Magnus and closed his eyes as well. ‘’Not gonna lie, this is really, uh, really hot,’’ said Magnus and shuddered a little bit as he continued palming his member through the layers of fabric that he still had on, but his boxers were soon getting kind of tight and he bit his lip. ‘’It would be nice to have you here right now, I’d make good use of your lips,’’ said Magnus and Alec chuckled softly.

‘’You do like it when I blow you, huh?’’ asked Alec and laughed softly, unzipping his pants and he pulled his cock out and wrapped his fingers around the base of it, stroking himself a few times before he pulled both the underwear and pants a bit lower. 

‘’You just have such talented mouth,’’ teased Magnus. ‘’So perfect, hot and that tongue of yours, Alec, I  _ can’t _ ,’’ said Magnus and Alec smiled. 

‘’Oh, I’d allow you to fuck my mouth, Magnus,’’ said Alec, dirty words already spilling out because he was just so, so pent up, his hand moving fast and his hips were buckling like crazy. Magnus grinned and finally decided that he waited enough, Alec moaning when he heard the sound of the zipper being undone. ‘’Tell me what you’re doing now.’’

‘’Jerking off,’’ said Magnus and Alec moaned again. ‘’And am so, so hard.’’ Magnus dragged his tongue over his lower lip and gulped, making a little pause. At this rate he wasn’t going to last long and he didn’t even-  _ Imagining Alec on his couch, stroking his hard cock and the way he was moaning into his ear was just heaven.  _ True, true heaven. ‘’God, Alec, you really know how to make a man all hot and bothered.’’

‘’That should be my line,’’ said Alec, laughing as well, but his voice soon trailed off and all that was heard was the sound of the two of them moaning, Magnus encouraging Alec to keep going and Alec was just…  _ he was really a mess,  _ moaning loudly into his phone as he was gripping onto it tightly, thrusting back into his palm. ‘’Oh, God, Magnus, I’m really close,’’ said Alec and Magnus chuckled again, but couldn’t-

‘’Me too, Alec, come for me,’’ ordered Magnus and Alec gasped softly and nodded.

‘’Fucking hell, this is so hot, Magnus I’m co-coming,’’ groaned Alec, coming all over his hand and he gasped, listening to Magnus and by the way he was breathing and groaning, he was coming too. ‘’Did you come?’’ asked Alec and Magnus was just laughing - oh, he was feeling amazing. To answer to that question, Magnus snapped a quick picture and Alec moaned because… ‘’Oh, fuck, you came so much.’’

‘’I needed this so much,’’ said Magnus and Alec smiled.

‘’Me too, we both did quite honestly, I mean, fuck,’’ said Alec and Magnus giggled again. Magnus loved it when Alec turned into blabbering mess. ‘’Thank you,’’ said Alec and Magnus laughed.

‘’You’re thanking me?’’ asked Magnus and Alec shook his head.

‘’Sorry, I’m just kind of really-’’

‘’Adorable, you’re always blabbering after,’’ said Magnus and Alec flushed.

‘’I’m sorry, it’s-’’

‘’I love it,’’ said Magnus and Alec for a second thought (maybe hoped) that Magnus would say  _ you  _ and not  _ it.  _ ‘’Can’t wait to be finally back so that we can properly do it, hmm,’’ said Magnus and Alec nodded, his heart hammering harder than ever.  _ He wished Magnus would tell him that he loved him and Alec was just-  _

He liked him.

Alec liked Magnus.

Alec’s breath shook and he just swallowed thickly and nodded. ‘’Yep, I can’t wait to meet up either,’’ said Alec and then gripped onto the phone and just- ‘’I, um, I gotta go, I have-’’

‘’Okay, talk to you later?’’

‘’Yep, let’s, um, do that,’’ said Alec and then quickly cancelled the phone call and dropped the phone next to him and took in a deep breath. ‘’Oh, my God,’’ said Alec and took in a deep breath. ‘’I think I like him.’’


	10. Chapter 10

Magnus was happy that he was finally coming back to New York from the business trip. He missed his apartment and his friends. It was fun while Alec was there, but then being stuck alone with Camille was hell even though she finally stopped trying to show off in front of him. The dinner with Scott had completely humiliated her and she finally shut up - the only thing she and Magnus talked about was the wedding planning and it was finally what Magnus had wanted the entire time. A business relation and nothing more than that. If only Camille had been so professional from the very start.  _ Then again, Magnus also wasn’t completely professional from the very start as he did bring Alec with him.  _ The whole idea of them working together was a bad idea, but there was nothing that could be done now. The wedding was happening in three weeks and that was how much longer Magnus needed to suffer through this and then he was a free man once more to do whatever he wanted. 

Magnus was happy that he was finally coming back home, he came back to New York on Wednesday, just a little bit after noon and he first met up with his friends - Catarina, Ragnor and Raphael, because they have all missed him and they had a lot to catch up. Unlike him, they didn’t have a day off, so he met with them for their lunch break and they spent a good hour just chatting about things. Magnus could tell that they had many questions about Alec because his social media was filled with pictures of the two of them - from the plan where the two of them wanted to make Camille jealous - but even though Magnus could feel that they wanted to ask him, nobody did. Which Magnus was glad about it, because he still wasn’t too sure about what he was going to do about  _ these _ feelings. 

Yes, Magnus was aware of them, he was no fool, but he wasn’t going to act on them. After all, it was just a silly crush at best, so why make a big deal about it? Still, he was looking forward to seeing Alec, but as he called him to tell him that he was back in town, Alec didn’t pick up. Still, that wasn’t really too weird since Magnus knew that Alec was working, so he didn’t want to push it. He was just busy, he did mention that he had a shit ton of work that he needed to be done, because most of his co-workers sucked and Magnus could relate to that so much. All of that being said, Magnus still decided to send a few texts, just to make sure that Alec got it that he was back, so that they could maybe meet up?

**Magnus:** Called you before, but you didn’t pick up. It’s okay, you’re probably drowning in work as we speak. I just wanted to let you know that I’m back in town, finally, so if you want, the two of us can meet up. Let’s say in the evening? I can come by your office and then after we can go grab something to eat? ;-)

**Magnus:** If you’re too busy, then it’s completely okay. See you another day, hope you’re doing okay though. Haven’t heard from you since yesterday. 

**Magnus:** Okay, then. Good luck at work today. Something is telling me that you are going to need it.

All of those texts have been sent around three hours ago and Alec still didn’t get back to him. Magnus was now sitting in his apartment and was just kind of lost in thought. It wasn’t like Alec to  _ not _ respond to him in within a few hours, even if he was busy, so maybe something happened? Could be that he lost his phone or something? Oh, maybe he forgot it at home, that could have happened. It had happened to Magnus more than once and he huffed under his breath. Kind of a pity because he really wished that the two of them could meet up that day, it’s been three whole days since he had last seen Alec and maybe he was being a little bit dramatic, but he missed his  _ friend.  _ Yes, a friend. Magnus knew his place and he wasn’t going to cross any lines, especially because that was the deal - no  _ romantic _ feelings involved. 

Did he want to tell Alec? Of course he did. But he also didn’t know how Alec felt about him and he didn’t want to damage their friendship, which was amazing. He liked hanging out with Alec, he was the most comfortable when he was around him, so he wasn’t going to risk damaging that. All of that being said, Magnus still  _ hoped.  _ Maybe that Alec would say something? Or showed any signs that he felt a bit more than just friendship towards him, but he was just so hard to read. Alec knew how to hide his feelings well and Magnus just decided to stay put until he was completely sure about it. 

“That’s not like him though,” whined Magnus, locked his phone and then threw himself onto the bed. But Alec wouldn’t be blowing him off, now would he? Of course not, that wasn’t like Alec.  _ Ignoring him.  _ No he wouldn’t, Alec was a good friend. Taking in a deep breath, Magnus managed to calm himself down a little bit and he just nodded to himself. It was all okay, he was just thinking too hard about it. Biting on his lip, he the rubbed his palms together and smiled. “Maybe I should surprise him in his office,” said Magnus, rolling onto his stomach and then his smile widened. Yes, he knew around what time Alec’s shift ended, so he was going to wait until then and he was going to see him! “I’ll bring him something to eat, he was going to be starving, I bet,” said Magnus, happily humming to himself. 

Magnus decided not to send any texts to Alec about it - that he was coming, he wanted it to be a surprise and he was pretty sure that Alec was going to like the surprise. Plus, he was going to love the food as he was going to be pretty much starving by then.  _ Magnus didn’t like that office, they made Alec work way too much.  _ And nobody even appreciated him!.

Magnus appreciated him and all of his hard work though!

* * *

‘’Today sucked so much,’’ whined Alec, leaning back against the chair and he took in a deep breath. It was a hectic day, he had a shit ton of work and there was still more of it, but he decided to call it a day because he literally couldn’t anymore. Alec was still in his office and his secretary was so kind that he decided to order them both some take out. Fast food or not - it was fucking delicious, especially because Alec couldn’t even grab lunch that day, it was that busy. ‘’This is so fucking good,’’ said Alec, moaning along as he ate and Underhill smiled at him. 

‘’Yep,’’ said Underhill and shook his head. ‘’Imogen sucked my soul completely today, a freaking dementor, that’s what she is,’’ said Underhill and groaned, rubbing the back of his neck, but he was content - the day was finally over and he could finally return back home, where somebody was already waiting for him. ‘’Can’t wait to get finally home,’’ he groaned and Alec nodded. Yep, home was amazing, he wished he could just teleport himself there. But no, it was also the way back home that annoyed him. It was just… everything was so annoying. 

‘’Must be nice to have someone waiting for you back at home,’’ commented Alec and glanced down at his food. ‘’All I come back home to is empty apartment, which is a mess usually, so I have to clean and then cook all on my own,’’ he said bitterly and then he shook his head. Right, he had that before, but it all turned out to be bunch of crap and he quickly shook his head. ‘’I mean if you have a nice boyfriend, like yours, not a dick like Josh was,’’ said Alec and Underhill nodded.

‘’Yup, hated him, never liked him,’’ said Underhill. He didn’t know Josh too much, but he used to come by Alec’s office every now and then and he didn’t like him there. ‘’You’re much better off without him, man,’’ said Underhill and Alec nodded, humming and he continued eating in silence. ‘’How I wish it was Friday already,’’ said Underhill after a little while and Alec nodded and then groaned sadly.

‘’I freaking wish,’’ said Alec and then shook his head. ‘’I mean for fuck sake, today she was terrible,’’ said Alec, continuing his little rant and Underhill nodded. ‘’She called you up to her office too, right?’’ he asked and Underhill nodded again and he just shook his head sadly. ‘’Look, I have no problem with doing the work she gives me - I can literally slave off in my office for days and days, but being called up to her office?’’ he asked and shuddered. ‘’Now that’s scarier than any horror movie I’ve watched till now,’’ said Alec, laughing as he said that and Underhill was also laughing. 

‘’I mean I can’t disagree with you on that,’’ said Underhill and Alec was cackling. ‘’Imogen’s office even has that cold feeling,’’ said Underhill and Alec was laughing louder. ‘’I mean it, it’s always colder in there than in the rest of the rooms here,’’ said Underhill and Alec pressed his lips together, but that was so true.

‘’Do you think her office is possessed?’’ asked Alec seriously, but was trying his best to keep his laughter down and Underhill was also shaking with laughter and he just took in a deep breath and shook his head in the end.

‘’Doubt it, I mean evil spirits would run away from her, she’s too scary even for them,’’ said Underhill and Alec started laughing on top of his lungs.

* * *

Magnus was standing in front of Alec’s office and was feeling kind of discouraged. He came all the way there, expecting Alec to be still working, but he could hear laughter coming from inside of his office and he gulped and decided to check up on his phone once more, but he saw that Alec still didn’t reply to any of his texts and he just standing there for at least five minutes now, contemplating what to do. Did Alec really ignore his texts on purpose? Because if he had the time to be laughing like this with someone, then he could quite clearly make some time to reply to him, no? Gulping, Magnus took in a deep breath and he decided to knock anyway - sure, he could be having a good time, but he was probably starving and Magnus made sure that he brought a lot of food with him!

As Magnus knocked on the door, the laughter died out. There was some rustling being heard and then Alec finally replied. ‘’Come in, it’s open,’’ said Alec’s voice from the inside of his office and Magnus put on a brave face and he opened the door, stepping inside of the office. Thinking that it could be Imogen, Alec quickly cleaned up his desk a little bit, but he also knew that the woman didn’t like to be left waiting, so… Magnus had the widest smile on his face, heart happily fluttering because he was finally going to see Alec!

‘’Alec, hi,’’ said Magnus, turning around the close the door. It was kind of hard, his hands were full, but he managed to do it anyway! ‘’I was near your office,’’ lied Magnus. He didn’t just happen to be there, no, of course not. ‘’I thought I’d stop by and say hi. Also, I know this is the time you get off usually, so I brought you some food. I’ve got those cupcakes that you liked and-’’ he started, but his voice trailed off when he finally turned around and his eyes widened. He could quite clearly see that Alec wasn’t starving anymore and he felt even more discouraged when he saw who was keeping Alec company. It was that hot secretary guy! ‘’Oh,’’ said Magnus, feeling deflated and all of his good mood evaporated.

‘’Magnus,’’ piped Alec up and narrowed his eyes - what was he doing there? Right, he was back in town that day and Alec’s stomach dropped when he realised that he didn’t return Magnus’ call. He could hear his phone ringing, but he didn’t have the time to reply and then…  _ where was his phone exactly?  _ ‘’You’re here,’’ said Alec, his heart leaping up to his throat and he swallowed thickly. Oh, he still didn’t completely know what to do with the feelings that he realised he had for Magnus!

‘’Yeah, I am, but, I feel like I shouldn’t,’’ said Magnus and then laughed nervously. ‘’Did I, um, interrupt something?’’ asked Magnus, glancing at Underhill, who waved and shook his head. Not really no, but Underhill could notice that he should get going.  _ Alec didn’t reply to him, did he ignore him on purpose?  _ He has finished work, that was clear to him. ‘’I,’’ said Magnus and then looked back at Alec. ‘’I texted you,’’ said Magnus and silence fell between them. Alec felt even more horrible because he realised how that made him look.

‘’Crap,’’ said Alec, standing up, feeling his pockets for his phone. ‘’No, where the hell is my phone?’’ asked Alec, trying to remember. ‘’I was meaning to call you back, but then Imogen called me into her office,’’ said Alec and Magnus raised a brow. ‘’I was dealing with the-’’ said Alec and bent down, opening the drawer of his desk and his jaw dropped because there it was the little fucker. His phone fell into the drawer before and then Imogen called him up, he just ended up nervously closing the drawer, forgetting about his phone and he- ‘’There you are,’’ said Alec, pulling out his phone and his heart dropped even more when he saw that Magnus had indeed texted him.

‘’Oh, shit, I’m sorry, I didn’t see these until now,’’ said Alec, explaining himself.  _ Shit, maybe he was explaining himself too much?  _ Underhill raised a brow, eyes going from Magnus to Alec and he felt confused - didn’t Alec say that Magnus was just a friend? ‘’Magnus, I’m sorry,’’ said Alec and Magnus felt a bit better. At least Alec didn’t ghost him! Still, he felt stupid for showing up like that, when Alec had already eaten. Just what was he supposed to do now? Feeling like an idiot, Magnus decided that he should be going and he just put on a little forced smile and then nodded.

‘’No, um, it’s fine, I should have called and asked if it was okay for me to come by,’’ said Magnus and then just shrugged. ‘’I’ll, uh, I’ll be on my way, I don’t want to interrupt you guys,’’ he said and he then turned around. Alec narrowed his eyes - why was Magnus acting like this? Alec didn’t understand it and he didn’t want Magnus to leave just like that! He didn’t mind him coming by, of course not! In fact, he was overjoyed to see him, he wanted for the two of them to catch up on things. It’s only been three days, but in all honesty, it felt much longer and he huffed under his breath and quickly stood up, just as Magnus was about to step outside of the office.

‘’Magnus, wait up,’’ said Alec and Magnus quickly turned around. ‘’You don’t have to leave,’’ said Alec and laughed softly. ‘’Of course you’re more than welcome to drop by anytime you want,’’ said Alec softly and Magnus just smiled, glancing down. His cheeks were feeling kind of red and he was happy. ‘’Stay, I want you to meet Theo over here and-’’ started Alec, but Underhill stood up and decided that he should really get going. There was something going on between the two of them - that was  _ more _ than friendship no matter what Alec said - and he could see the look on Magnus’ face before. He wanted to be alone with Alec and he just smiled; whatever it was, he hoped that they’d figure it out eventually. 

‘’Boss, it’s okay, I’ll be on my way,’’ said Underhill and Alec pouted. ‘’Some other time, Marcel’s probably already waiting for me,’’ he said and then smiled at Magnus. 

‘’You sure?’’ asked Alec. ‘’He brings cupcakes, they’re really good,’’ offered Alec and Magnus’ face darkened. Maybe he was being selfish, but he wanted time alone with Alec. Underhill shook his head and then laughed again.

‘’Some other time, like I said,’’ said Underhill. ‘’I should get going,’’ he said. ‘’Have fun, you two,’’ he then said, giving both of them a little smile. He then collected his things and stepped outside of Alec’s office and Alec arched his brow when he heard the other laughing outside. He pouted and sighed sadly. 

‘’Pity, I wanted you to meet him,’’ said Alec. ‘’I mean properly, you’ve seen him before, I know, but...’’

Magnus didn’t like that Alec was still talking about him. His lips twitched and he just stepped closer to Alec.  _ He didn’t feeling like this because he knew that he was jealous and he shouldn’t be.  _ ‘’So,’’ said Magnus, silence falling between them and he took in a deep breath. ‘’I didn’t know that you and your handsome secretary were this close,’’ said Magnus and hoped that he didn’t sound too jealous. But he did, he so did and he didn’t like himself when he got like this. 

Alec blinked a few times and he then narrowed his eyes. Handsome? Um, where did that come from? ‘’Underhill’s a friend of mine,’’ said Alec slowly and Magnus hummed and nodded.

‘’Nice,’’ said Magnus. ‘’So you do think he’s handsome,’’ he carried on. God, he wanted to slap himself so much.  _ Stop it, stop it, stop- _

‘’Um, I didn’t say that, but you keep bringing it up,’’ said Alec and then his eyes widened.  _ Magnus was into him?!  _ Now Magnus wasn’t the only jealous one and he pressed his lips together and he just decided to play it off cool.  _ Also, he wasn’t jealous.  _ At least he wasn’t going to admit it to himself. ‘’Oh, Underhill’s off limits,’’ said Alec and Magnus’ eyes widened. ‘’I mean he has a boyfriend, so you should just let it go,’’ said Alec quickly and Magnus’ jaw dropped.  _ Alec assumed that?!  _ So, he really didn’t have any feelings of those nature for him then? Magnus sighed and then he just quickly shook his head. But he felt a lot better. Alec also wasn’t into him and he had a boyfriend.  _ Good, good to know. _

But it wasn’t like Magnus was jealous. Pssh. Nope. He was just curious, that was all. Though he did feel a lot better and he took in a deep breath. ‘’Oh, I’m not interested… forget I ever said anything,’’ said Magnus and Alec just nodded. ‘’So, um, cupcake?’’ offered Magnus and Alec perked up, quickly nodding.

‘’Yes, please,’’ said Alec and Magnus smiled, placing the bags he had with him onto Alec’s desk and he arched a brow when Alec stepped closer. ‘’But first,’’ said Alec and gave Magnus a hug and the other’s eyes widened a little bit, but he soon relaxed in Alec’s arms and he wrapped his own arms around him and he closed his eyes slowly and took in a deep breath. He missed Alec so much and his smile widened. Alec slowly broke the long hug and he took in a deep breath. ‘’I missed you.’’

‘’I missed you too,’’ said Magnus and then happily sighed.  _ So much.  _

* * *

‘’Literally can’t wait for the wedding to finally happen,’’ said Magnus. ‘’Only three more weeks, only three more and then it’s finally over,’’ said Magnus happily and Alec smiled, nodding. ‘’By the way, you are comin right?’’ asked Magnus and Alec shrugged. Sure? ‘’I mean Camille will be here with her Scott, so if I come alone-’’ he started and then he just looked down. Maybe he was asking too much for Alec to be actually his  _ date _ to the wedding. It was-

‘’Duh,’’ said Alec in the end and smiled. ‘’I mean I’d be offended if you wouldn’t invite me, I kind of helped plan the whole thing, come on,’’ said Alec and Magnus smiled. He was happy that Alec didn’t make it weird. They were over at Alec’s place - Magnus decided to join him there after they finally left the office. He just wanted to spend some time together with him and he was just gazing at him. They were in the living room, sipping on beer and Alec was perfectly content with himself. As was Magnus.

‘’Good, then it’s settled,’’ said Magnus happily and leaned back.

‘’It’ll be amazing to see it all come together like this,’’ said Alec and Magnus looked at him. ‘’I mean I had no idea it took so much hard work to get all of it organised like this, you’re truly amazing,’’ said Alec and Magnus flushed and he just quickly shook his head because it wasn’t all that impressive. It was, yes, but he was just embarrassed because when Alec complimented him, his heart started beating way too fast for his liking and he just turned into stuttering mess, which didn’t really help! At all.

‘’Oh, pssh, it’s not really that… impressive,’’ said Magnus and Alec started laughing.

‘’Come on, you make the impossible come true, I’ve seen you how you work, it’s amazing,’’ said Alec and Magnus’ flush deepened. ‘’Oh, you’re blushing?’’ teased Alec and Magnus shook his head quickly. But the flush was there and Alec was laughing. Magnus grumbled under his breath and he just looked down. 

‘’Am not,’’ said Magnus, grabbed the pillow that was on his side and hit Alec with it. Alec snorted - again with that? Magnus had attacked him with the pillow before and it was honestly so hilarious and he just tried his best not to laugh. Magnus narrowed his eyes, holding back his laughter and he aimed for Alec’s head and hit him right in the face.

‘’Hey,’’ laughed Alec, trying to avoid and before Magnus could lightly smack him with the pillow again, Alec grabbed the pillow and pulled it closer to him, thus pulling Magnus closer as well as he was still holding the pillow and Magnus took in a deep breath when he was suddenly really close to Alec. Alec’s laughter soon died out and he pressed his lips together, looking into Magnus’ eyes.  _ Crap, crap, crap-  _

‘’Alec?’’

Alec didn’t reply, looking into Magnus’ eyes and he had to pull back. He knew that he should stand up and do something else - do not cross the line.  _ Do not cross the line. Do not-  _ Alec’s brain didn’t listen to him and he just leaned in and placed his lips upon Magnus’ because he couldn’t help it, Magnus gasping out softly and before Alec could pull back he kissed him back. It happened again. He was completely weak when it came to Alec’s kisses, kissing him back softly and he dropped the pillow, cupping Alec’s face instead and Alec gasped softly, wrapping his arms around Magnus’ waist and he pulled him closer.

Alec’s head was spinning - Magnus was kissing him back. He was kissing him back, making Alec’s cheeks redden and he went in back for more, but at some point he snapped back to reality and he managed to pull back, Magnus chasing his lips and he gulped, licking across his lower lip. ‘’Magnus, what are we doing?’’ whispered Alec, his voice deep and Magnus looked down. 

Right.

Fuck.

‘’I-I think we-we should, um, stop,’’ said Magnus, his hands shaking and Alec nodded.

‘’Yes,’’ said Alec. They really should have stopped, but instead of pulling away, they both went in for  _ more _ . 

  
  
  
  



	11. Chapter 11

‘’Magnus, stop kidding yourself,’’ said Catarina and Magnus looked at her. ‘’It’s so obvious that the two of you are already dating as it is,’’ she said and Magnus bit his lip - he wasn’t so sure about that part, but it was obvious that there was something there. Something that was mutual and he couldn’t pretend anymore, but he also didn’t want to do or say something that he was going to end up regretting later on. Magnus didn’t say anything and Catarina let out a frustrated groan because she was trying to tell it to his friend for a while now that this wasn’t just about sex anymore. And Magnus acknowledged that, but she didn’t know why he was being so stubborn about it. He should come clean about his feelings to Alec, it was clear that the other guy felt something for him. From what Catarina heard that Magnus told about him, he seemed that he was interested in Magnus, more than just the benefits bit and she was just… ugh. She wished that she could just push them together and make them talk about their feelings. She didn’t understand why it was so hard for both of them to just come out and say it. Ugh. 

‘’Cat, there’s obviously something going on between us, but we’re not dating,’’ said Magnus and Catarina raised an eyebrow. Okay, then what would he call what they’ve been doing then? He really forgot how dating worked? It’s been true that it’s been a long time since Magnus was in a relationship, but still, he wasn’t this dense, so he was doing this on purpose. ‘’It’s just us hanging out,’’ said Magnus and pressed his lips together. ‘’And hooking up every now and then,’’ he said and then hummed. _And making out every now and then._ Since that kiss in Alec’s place they haven’t spoken to each other and Magnus pressed his lips together.

Magnus huffed - they weren’t really avoiding each other, but it’s been about a week since then and both of them were _too_ busy to really talk or meet up with each other, but still… maybe it was time to break the silence and talk about what happened? It was like back then in the hotel room when the two of them couldn’t stop kissing. It happened again that day in Alec’s place and it was Magnus who stopped that time. They didn’t really talk about it, Magnus kind of ended up hurrying out of there and he felt like an ass, but then again, Alec didn’t really try stopping him. It was… a lot of them had a lot on their minds and they were just taking their god damn time as they were trying to figure out what to do - was Magnus even prepared to give himself another chance of properly falling in love? And was Alec? 

‘’Okay, then since you’re so smart,’’ said Catarina. ‘’He’s the only one that you’ve been seeing?’’ asked Catarina and Magnus arched a brow. ‘’You know what I mean, he’s the only one you’ve been hooking up with, there’s nobody else, is that correct?’’ asked Catarina and Magnus quickly nodded. ‘’There you go,’’ she said and Magnus still didn’t look too convinced. ‘’Do I have to spell it out for you?’’ she whined and Magnus gave her an offended look. ‘’The whole hanging out, Magnus, it’s sort of like going out on dates, no?’’ asked Catarina. ‘’You go by his office to bring him food, don’t you see that you two-’’

‘’Okay, Cat, you’ve made your point,’’ he said in the end and Catarina nodded. _Freaking finally, it was about time that Magnus finally opened up his eyes and saw what was truly going on._ ‘’But I just, ugh,’’ said Magnus and Catarina wished that Magnus would stop complicating things like this for himself because it was completely not needed. Magnus never liked taking the easy road - he always complicated things before he was able to make a decision and she huffed under her breath. Maybe she needed to talk to the other dense dork of the pair. ‘’I mean if he truly feels the same, he would say something, no?’’ asked Magnus and Catarina groaned. ‘’Stop it, you know it’s true,’’ said Magnus and Catarina clicked with her tongue.

‘’Not if he’s as dense as you,’’ she said under her breath and then cleared her throat. Still Magnus was able to hear it and he just frowned. ‘’Look, sweetie,’’ said Catarina and placed her hand on top of his shoulder. ‘’I know what this is about, you’re scared,’’ said Catarina and Magnus quickly turned to her and he shook his head - he wasn’t scared. He didn’t like when people just assumed that he was a coward! ‘’And that is completely okay,’’ said Catarina, giving her friend a soft smile.

‘’I’m not a coward, Cat,’’ said Magnus stubbornly.

‘’I never said you were,’’ said Catarina and Magnus’ facial expression softened up a little bit. ‘’But I know you enough, Magnus, to know when you’re scared of something and this is it - you’re scared of taking the chance,’’ said Catarina and hit the nail of the head. ‘’It’s okay to fall in love again, Magnus, not everyone is like Camille, especially not this guy, from what I’ve heard, he’s a sweetheart,’’ said Catarina. ‘’It’s time to stop projecting so much and finally start living again, come on,’’ said Catarina and Magnus puffed his cheeks. Yeah, she was right, but still! It wasn’t so easy. In the past he had no problems in telling people that he _liked_ them, it came easy. It was easy for him to wear his heart on his sleeve, but not anymore and it was hard for him to open up.

‘’You’re right,’’ said Magnus and then shook his head. ‘’I mean, what if he doesn’t want to start a relationship with me? I mean I know I said that there’s something between us and I’m not denying it now,’’ he said. ‘’But what if he still won’t want to start something more serious with me, Cat?’’ asked Magnus. ‘’I rather have friendship than nothing. It would be all awkward later and ugh,’’ said Magnus and Catarina gave him a sympathetic look.

‘’It’s a chance you’ll have to take, Magnus,’’ said Catarina. ‘’But I’m sure-’’

‘’Nope, not until I’m very sure I’m not saying anything,’’ said Magnus and Catarina took in a deep breath. ‘’I don’t wanna risk it,’’ he said and Catarina placed her arms on top of her chest. _And how was he going to figure that out?_ If neither of them was preparing to start a conversation about it? They’re going to pine away until the end of times? Oh, these two! Catarina clasped her hands together, trying to be patient.

‘’So,’’ she said. ‘’Until then your plan is to pine away in the darkness?’’ she asked, joking a little bit, but she was also serious about it and Magnus just nodded. Catarina rolled her eyes and then took in a deep breath. Yep, pine away and whine about it to his friends it was. Catarina knew Magnus well enough to know what to prepare for.

* * *

Alec was done with work that and he decided that he didn’t want to go home quite yet, so he decided to hit his favourite pub that was just around the corner of his apartment. And he was sitting there and was just drinking, maybe a bit too much because he was soon getting very talkative and because he didn’t have anyone in there to chat with, it was the bartender that had to listen to Alec’s drunken blabbering even though he really, really didn’t want to, but since he was working, he just put on a smile and was nodding along as Alec was just… opening up. And what was he talking about? Magnus, of course, that was the only thing that he could talk about lately and it was annoying him as well. Alec was sitting on the stool, supporting himself against the bar and he was just in a need of an opinion. 

“Okay, but like,” said Alec, hiccuping a little bit and he took in a deep breath. “It’s not like I don’t want to tell him that I like him, but what if he doesn’t like me? Because it was supposed to be all _no strings attached?_ ” asked Alec and then he shook his head. “But it’s all just so complicated, I mean I don’t even know if he likes me back,” said Alec and huffed under his breath. “This is all just so confusing,” he said and then emptied his glass and demanded another one. The guy working at the bar narrowed his eyes, but poured him another grin and Alec happily smiled. Indeed, booze was a friend!

“Why don’t you just ask?” asked the bartender in the end because he could tell that the other was looking at him and was waiting for him to say something. Alec scoffed when the other said that and he just shook his head. Yeah, that sort of an advice sucked if he was being honest. Just what was he supposed to go? Go up to Magnus and tell him how he felt and hoped for the best? Um, nope, he wasn’t doing that again and Alec just took in a deep breath and emptied another glass, happily giggled and then he was going to tell _Adam_ over there why his advice sucked.

“That-that opinion sucks,” said Alec and shook his head, clasping his hands together. “I mean what do you think I am? And what if he doesn’t like me back, huh? Then what am I supposed to do? Yeah we’re not doing that again, come on, Adam I need a better advice,” said Alec and the bartender rolled his eyes and then took in a deep breath and pressed his lips together.

“My name’s Alan,” he whined, but then he figured that the other was far too drunk to actually care about getting his name right and he just shook his head and then took the glass away from Alec’s hand and Alec whined again. “Sir, I think you’ve had enough,” said Alan and Alec was horrified - _sir, just how old did he think that he was?_ Sure, he was younger than him, but still he couldn’t-

“Sir?” asked Alec. “I’m not even that old, come on, gimme more, I’m paying customer and-”

“Look,” said Alan and then pressed his lips again. He really tried to be patient, but this customer was really getting on his nerves. “I’m not giving you anything more to drink, but feel free to hang around until you sober up a little bit, I mean you can’t go home like this,” said Alan and Alec scoffed, but then when he was about to stand up, he decided that maybe Adam was right. “I’ll give you some water instead,” said the other and Alec nodded, showing him thumbs up.

“You’re a good friend, Adam.”

“I’m not… never mind,” said Alan and then gave Alec the glass of water. “Dude, I’m just a waiter, I’m not your friend,” said Alan and Alec stuck his tongue out, but soon forgot about that and he decided on the fact that the other was his new best friend and he then just smiled.

“So, what should I do?” asked Alec. “Maybe I should just ignore this little crush? I mean it’s nothing special, I feel like-” he started, but then Alan started laughing at him and Alec stopped talking. “Stop laughing, how dare you? You’ll lose the privilege of being my friend,” threatened Alec and the other just started laughing harder, shaking his head and he just decided to ignore the asshole.

“If it was just some sort of a little stupid crush you wouldn’t be sitting here for a couple of hours, drinking your sorrows away and talking about him for two hours straight,” said Alan and Alec’s jaw dropped. That actually made a lot of sense even to his intoxicated mind and he just decided to ignore him. He didn’t like him - he didn’t even agree with him! What a bad friend. So, Alec stood up and started waddling over to the door and the other was kind of worried because- “Where are you going now?”

“Out, I can’t be near here anymore,” he said, signing at Alan and the waiter rolled his eyes. “Traitor.”

“Okay, but you’re drunk as hell, you can’t-”

“I’ll call _Magnus_ to come pick me up. How about that, huh? Mm-hmm, unlike you he isn’t a traitor,” said Alec and then decided to wait for Magnus outside - alas, he couldn’t wait inside next by that traitor!

* * *

Magnus came as soon as Alec called him. It was weird talking to the other after a week of no contact, but when he heard that Alec needed him to take him home, he didn’t even think about it twice, quickly dressing up, going into his car and he drove over to Alec’s direction, but he soon found out that the place that he was drinking at was quite close to Alec’s place. Still, he didn’t think too much about it; Alec sounded really intoxicated, so he was going to be more than happy about bringing him back home safely. And he was so happy that he was the first one that crossed Alec’s mind to call. 

Magnus found Alec sitting on the sidewalk and he quickly hurried over to him, worried that he was sick, but Alec happily giggled when he saw Magnus. Magnus was finally there and he was just so happy to see him, smiling and Magnus smiled as well to see that Alec was in high spirits. But he was indeed quite drunk and he came over to him, picking him off the ground and he shook his head. “What are you doing out here? Didn’t get kicked out, did you?”

“Nope,” said Alec and then shook his head. “Inside there is a traitor,” said Alec, speaking quietly that time so that someone couldn’t hear him, but they were the only ones outside and he just chuckled. Alec was indeed very adorable and Alec quickly wrapped an arm around Magnus, clinging onto him as he stood up and his vision was spinning. Oh, it was all funny inside of his head, but then he looked into Magnus’ eyes and everything made sense again. _Fucking, fuck, fuck!_

“A traitor?” asked Magnus.

“Yes, the name is Alan or Adam, or something… I forgot,” said Alec and Magnus shook his head, chuckling again. “Can you take me home?” whined Alec and Magnus just nodded, ignoring the fluttering of his heart and he just helped Alec over to his car and Alec happily got inside. 

“You wait for me here, I’ll go see if you took care of the bill and… other stuff,” said Magnus and Alec nodded. Sure, let him go do that, he didn’t want to be near that traitor anyway. Magnus hurried inside after he made sure that Alec was all set up, quite quickly learning that the poor waiter was actually a sweet guy, making sure that he apologised on Alec’s behalf and paid for this bill completely. Then and only then he went back over to the car, where he found Alec jamming to one of the songs and he smiled, quickly turned down the volume. 

“Noo, that was just the best part,” said Alec, pouting.

“Okay, big guy, hold your horses,” said Magnus and Alec gulped, but then nodded and glanced over at Magnus. “I’m gonna get you home now, okay?” asked Magnus and Alec nodded again, too tired to actually think of anything else and Magnus smiled a bit wider. Trying not to get too lost in the moment, he decided to start up his car and he drove around the block, parking on the place that was nearest to Alec’s apartment

* * *

“It won’t fit in, the hole’s too small,” whined Alec as he was trying to unlock the door of his apartment, but the idiotic key just wouldn’t go into the freaking key hole and he groaned again, biting into his lip and he then took in a deep breath. “I can always make it fit,” he then said proudly and he then glanced at Magnus, who rolled his eyes and was holding back his laughter. “Wouldn’t you agree so?” he carried on, trying to flirt his way out of it, but flirting wasn’t going to open the door and he angrily kicked the door. “Ouch, Magnus the door’s evil, it kicked me back,” he said and Magnus just stepped closer, took the key away from Alec’s hands and unlocked the door for him.

“There you go, Alec,” said Magnus and Alec was just so amazed and in awe. Magnus was indeed amazing, nodding and he slowly waddled inside, Magnus following because he wasn’t so sure if Alec was in any state to be left alone. Alec was giggling, taking off his jacket and he then glanced at Magnus, looking into his eyes again and he sighed happily. He had such pretty eyes, Alec was in awe.

“You’re amazing,” said Alec and Magnus glanced down, cheeks reddening and he just cleared his throat. _Alec was drunk, Alec wasn’t in the state to be having such a serious conversation._ Everything that he said was probably due to the influence and- “I’m so happy that you came to pick me up,” said Alec. Was he tearing up? “That Adam was evil,” said Alec and Magnus just laughed, shaking his head and he then took in a deep breath.

“Okay, I’ll help you, what do you need?”

_You to love me._

Alec swallowed that back and he just looked around. “I got it,” said Alec and tried to get to his room, but he kind of tripped over his feet and Magnus caught him. Just in time. “Oh, maybe I do need you around,” said Alec and Magnus just laughed and pulled Alec up, the other trying his best to keep standing and he glanced back into Magnus’ eyes and he sighed softly. So, so pretty. “Did I really have that much?” asked Alec and then rubbed the back of his neck. “Probably, yes.”

“Okay, I’ll run you a bath and-”

“No, don’t wanna,” whined Alec.

“Okay, then I’ll help you get out of these clothes and-”

“Will you stay?” asked Alec, voice small and serious. Magnus looked into his eyes, heart hammering against his chest and he tried his best to keep it cool and calm, but the flush was there. Alec was asking him to stay, so of course he was staying.

“Yes,” forced Magnus out and Alec smiled.

“You’re really the best,” said Alec, cupping his face and Magnus tried his best to keep himself under control, but he had a feeling that Alec was going to say something important - drunk or not, it was going to count! “Magnus, I,” said Alec, Magnus feeling his hot breath against his cheek and he just nodded. Alec’s face was also looking kind of red, Alec dragging his tongue over his lower lip. _He was going to say it, if he was going to feel ever brave enough, it was going to be right there and then!_ “Magnus, I like-” he started, Magnus nodding because he kind of knew where he was going with that. Well, he hoped. But then Alec’s stomach turned, flopped and- “I’m gonna throw up,” whined Alec and Magnus felt greatly disappointed because he knew that Alec was about to tell him something important.

Maybe later, first he needed to help Alec get over to the bathroom. “I’ve got you,” said Magnus, Alec holding onto him as he was dragged over to the bathroom. 

* * *

‘’Ugh,’’ whined Alec as he dragged himself out of the bed, feeling like shit and he didn’t appreciate the sun shining right on his face like that. After that he kind of passed out, but he did manage to remember most of the events of the previous evening and he wondered when Magnus left. He remembered asking him to stay, but he didn’t when he left. He probably did at some point - he had work and other things on his place. _Shit, what was the time?_ Alec whined and he then looked through the window, biting into his lip. ‘’Just why in the world is the sun so high up already, little fucker… ouch,’’ said Alec, shaking his head and his eyes then widened when he heard sounds coming from his kitchen.

_Someone was in his apartment!_

Alec perked up and then took in a deep breath. Could it be that Magnus was still there? But it was the next day and- Alec rubbed the back of his neck, making his way over to the kitchen and he groaned because the sun was again shining right into his face - it was mocking him. Alec peeked inside of his kitchen and he indeed found Magnus there! He was back?! Alec’s heart leaped up to his throat and he cleared his throat. ‘’Magnus,’’ said Alec and stepped inside of the kitchen. Magnus flinched a bit and then smiled when he saw Alec standing by the door.

‘’Alec!’’ said Magnus and then his smiled even widened. Alec looked completely dishevelled - his hair was all messy. So adorable. ‘’How do you feel?’’ asked Magnus and Alec thought about it. He felt like shit still, yep, nothing changed. But Alec was the one that had many, many more questions.

‘’I feel like shit, I just… what’s the time? And why are you-’’

‘’Okay, so it’s noon,’’ said Magnus and Alec’s jaw dropped.

‘’Noon?!’’ shrieked Alec. ‘’Fuck, Imogen will murder me,’’ said Alec and started walking around in circles. ‘’I shouldn’t have drank that much, shit, shit, shit,’’ said Alec. ‘’And I didn’t call in to tell her that I’ll be running late and.... Oh, I need to sit down,’’ said Alec because all of that walking didn’t really sit well with his stomach. ‘’You’re missing work too, what are we gonna do?!’’

‘’Okay, first you need to sit, yes,’’ said Magnus, Alec nodding and he made his way to the chair, sitting down and he looked up at Magnus. ‘’No need to freak out, I took care of all,’’ said Magnus and Alec arched his brow. ‘’I called your secretary, I told Underhill that you won’t be coming in today,’’ said Magnus and Alec huffed. _Magnus did so much for him?!_ ‘’Also, I called my co-workers, telling them that I’ll be taking a day off too,’’ he said and Alec’s heart swell. ‘’Everything’s okay, you just take it easy there,’’ said Magnus and Alec nodded, groaning again. 

‘’Thanks, you’re the best,’’ said Alec and Magnus’ lips twitched. ‘’I’m so sorry for yesterday,’’ said Alec and closed his eyes. ‘’For calling and for making you stay here,’’ said Alec and Magnus waved it off.

‘’It was nothing, really,’’ said Magnus. ‘’Besides I wouldn’t leave even if you wouldn’t have asked me,’’ said Magnus and Alec gave him a soft smile. ‘’I’d be too worried,’’ he said and then turned over to the counter and brought Alec a mug with tea and Alec wrinkled his nose. He really wasn’t in the mood for anything. ‘’It’ll help, trust me,’’ said Magnus and Alec smelled the tea.

‘’I don’t know this tea, where-’’

‘’I went to the shop around the corner?’’ asked Magnus. ‘’Made a quick jump to it about an hour ago,’’ said Magnus and Alec flushed a bit more. Magnus bit his lip - was it too much? ‘’Sorry, I tend to get really worked up and-’’

‘’Thank you,’’ said Alec softly and Magnus smiled in the end and sat down next to Alec and kept his eyes on him. ‘’You really shouldn’t have gone through all that trouble for me,’’ said Alec. ‘’But thank you,’’ he said and Magnus smiled and then looked down. Silence fell between the two of them again and Magnus didn’t like it. Alec was thinking the same thing, he didn’t like the awkwardness that was around ever since that kiss happened. They barely spoke since then and Alec didn’t like it. ‘’Maybe Adam and everyone else was right,’’ muttered Alec.

‘’I beg you a pardon?’’ asked Magnus.

‘’Magnus,’’ said Alec finally and Magnus bit his lip. ‘’I think we should talk,’’ said Alec and Magnus’ heart leaped up to his throat and his hands were shaking, but he nodded.

‘’Yeah, we really should,’’ breathed out Magnus. 


	12. Chapter 12

“Magnus, I think we should talk,” said Alec and Magnus felt his heart stopping for a split second before it started racing again and he just slowly nodded. Yes, they needed to talk about it, but he was terrified and he didn’t even know why he was so scared about it because this was  _ Alec.  _ Alec was kind and compassionate, he’d never do or say something to hurt him. He was an amazing  _ friend _ and hopefully by the end of the talk, maybe they could come to the agreement that- Magnus cleared his throat, hiding his shaking hands away from Alec’s sight and in the end he managed to respond, his voice small and barely audible.

“Yeah, we really should,” muttered out Magnus and he was just sitting there as again the silence fell between the two of them. Magnus wanted to say something, but he really wasn’t sure what he was supposed to say. He didn’t know what Alec was about to say, but he knew that they were going to talk about that kiss. That much was clear and there were two ways that this could end: a) Alec would tell him that he liked the kiss and maybe (hopefully) that he liked him as well or b) that the kiss was a big mistake and that they should be ending this because they were getting too close. There were too many strings that have been formed between them. Not only a few strings, but a whole web and Magnus was just sitting there as he didn’t know how to gather enough courage to even bare to look at Alec. He was nervous as hell and he wasn’t the only one.

Alec was also nervous and he was chewing on his lip because even though he knew that they needed to talk about the kiss, Alec was still nervous about it. It was hard having to admit to himself that he liked Magnus more than he first thought and he just puffed his cheeks, taking in a deep breath. He took a long time before he dared to speak up again, Magnus’ foot nervously tapping against the floor and Alec just cleared his throat again and then finally forced himself to speak up because the silence was killing him. Also, he could see that Magnus was waiting for him to say something and in the end he just decided to start the conversation. It was nerve wracking. Ugh. 

“About the time that we kissed at my place,” said Alec and Magnus’ eyes flickered up at him, but then they quickly looked at the floor and Magnus just nodded. Yes, they needed to discuss about it - what did it mean? They’ve barely spoken to each other since then and Alec wondered if maybe he somehow made Magnus uncomfortable with it? But Magnus kissed him back that time and Alec just didn’t know - it was all jumbled up and it was best to just lay it out to see what was actually going on. “Things have been weird between us ever since, huh,” said Alec and Magnus nodded a little bit, feeling guilt coming over again and he puffed his cheeks. Maybe he was kind of avoiding Alec, but Alec was also avoiding him. It was a mess and they needed to deal with it like adults.

“Yeah,” said Magnus and then he ran fingers through his hair. Alec didn’t miss seeing how much his hands were shaking. “I suppose we did… get carried away that time,” said Magnus and then he made another pause and Alec nodded. “And we’ve been kind of distant since then, it’s just that it’s all,” he said and Alec nodded, holding in his breath and he was nervously waiting for Magnus to say something… anything. “It’s just a lot,” said Magnus and then slowly glanced up again. Alec was carefully studying his face, making his cheeks redden a little bit more and he then huffed under his breath and quickly glanced down. Alec wondered - was it good or bad  _ a lot?  _

“I agree, a lot of things have been on my mind since then,” said Alec and Magnus nodded. They’ve kissed a lot of times so far, but they both knew that that kiss was different - it happened naturally and they needed to figure it out. “I, um,” said Alec and Magnus glanced up at him again. Both of them were stalling, both of them too tainted from their bad experiences in the past to just come out and say it. Magnus was too scared to take that chance and Alec was just… not really good with words. He was really trying to convey how he was feeling without being too- “I did a lot of thinking,” he said and Magnus nodded. “Mostly about  _ us. _ ”

“Yes?” asked Magus, his voice small and hopeful. Magnus’ heart was again fluttering at the word  _ us _ because that meant that Alec considered the two of them being a thing. Like, together? Ugh, he was so annoyed with himself that he was too afraid to just ask. It wasn’t like him anymore and he bit his lip and he rubbed his palms together, trying to pretend that he didn’t care so much about it all, but it was all written on his face.  _ He was hoping that he was thinking in the right direction, that Alec considered the two of them really being a thing.  _

“Magnus, you’re shaking,” commented Alec and then tried to see if Magnus was feeling okay, but the other just shook his head. God, he wanted Alec to continue, he didn’t want the stalling to carry on.

“No, I’m, um, all’s good here, just carry on,” said Magnus, again whispering and then he dragged his tongue over his lower lip. “Please,” he added and the way that he said it came out like a prayer, a little plead and Alec’s heart clenched a little bit. “You said that you were thinking about, um, us?” asked Magnus and Alec eventually just nodded, but he still worried. Magnus looked really afraid and he just wanted to hug him. 

“Yeah,” said Alec and then nodded, again making a little pause. “I mean before we started hooking up we agreed that there wouldn’t be any strings attached to our relationship, right?” asked Alec and Magnus nodded.  _ Oh, fuck, it was happening? It was really freaking happening?!  _ Magnus glanced up again and forced himself not to look away despite the way that his heart was hammering against his ribcage. “I mean I don’t know about you, but I,” said Alec and he was also too scared to say it and he didn’t even know why at that point. ‘’For a while now I have a feeling that I actually,’’ started Alec, but his voice trailed off then and Magnus’ eyes widened.  _ That he what?!  _ Magnus needed to know! He took in a deep breath and then bit his lip.

‘’Y-yeah?’’ asked Magnus, his voice small and hopeful. Alec glanced into his eyes and then swallowed thickly, clasping his hands together and was nervously twisting his fingers.  _ Ugh, just come out and say it, Alec, you almost told him last evening!  _ Alec was so angry with himself. ‘’Alec, what kind of a feeling it is?’’ asked Magnus, trying to get Alec to snap out of it, but Alec was just sitting there, not saying anything and Magnus wasn’t a fool, he knew what Alec was going to say, so why wasn’t he? It was so obvious to the both of them and Magnus then took in a deep breath and scooted a little bit closer to Alec, who was now just glancing down at his lap, his hands nervously shivering. It was so hard for him to open up. Fuck it, all of those failed-

Magnus placed his hand over Alec’s and the younger one looked up, gazing into Magnus’ eyes and his breath shivered just a little bit and Magnus gave him a little smile. Alec’s eyes locked with Magnus’ and he couldn’t look away; his eyes were magical, feeling drawn to them and in the end he just breathed out softly. ‘’Alec,’’ said Magnus and Alec nodded, listening, feeling his heart up at his throat again and he huffed. ‘’The kind of feeling,’’ said Magnus carefully and Alec nodded again, turning his hand around, placing his palm up against Magnus’ and he slowly linked their fingers together. Finally a little smile spread across his face and he puffed his cheeks. ‘’I mean let’s stop pretending, we both know what’s going on between us,’’ said Magnus, kind of forcing himself to say it because he could see it in Alec’s eyes that he was just as frightened as he was. They both knew how difficult it was for them to allow themselves to fall in love again and admit it. It was hard, but still… 

Alec slowly nodded and he then cleared his throat. So, Magnus felt it too, right? There was no denying it, Magnus had just told him that he was also feeling the same thing? That he was crushing on him? Then again it was so much more than just a regular crush, but Alec didn’t want to get his hopes up too much and he finally snapped back to reality, regaining his gift for speech and he laughed shyly. ‘’Yes,’’ said Alec, finally allowing himself to relax a little bit. ‘’I, um, yes, you could say so, I,’’ said Alec and then relaxed a bit more when he felt Magnus’ thumb gently grazing the back of his palm and he just shuddered. Just a simple touch was able to make him feel so many things. ‘’I just like you so much,’’ he finally breathed out, kind of blurting it out as he was gazing into Magnus’ eyes again and Magnus closed his eyes, feeling relief washing all over him.

_ Alec said it, Alec finally said it.  _ Alec was shaking a little bit and Magnus slowly reached up with his hand, cupping Alec’s cheek and Alec nuzzled against the touch, Magnus’ palm was soft, welcoming, soothing. It’s been a while since Magnus was  _ this _ happy and he was just trying to contain his excitement. But Alec felt the same way as him and he was just exploding from happiness on the inside. ‘’I like you too,’’ said Magnus finally and Alec bit his lip and then glanced down, trying to contain himself just a little bit, but it was hard. All he wanted to do was to pull Magnus closer and crush their lips together. His head still felt a bit fuzzy, he was quite hungover, but at the time, he felt none of that. All he felt was how happy he was and he gulped. Fuck, his throat was feeling kind of dry. ‘’Feels so good to finally say it,’’ breathed out Magnus, laughing almost from happiness.

‘’I know,’’ said Alec and then shook his head. ‘’I’m sorry it took me such a long time, I just,’’ he said and then pulled back a little bit and Magnus gave him a little nod. Alec didn’t have to explain it, he understood it all too well, but still Alec decided to tell him why it took him such a long time to come clean about his feelings. ‘’I-I was afraid to, um, to even admit it to myself,’’ said Alec and laughed. ‘’I kind of feel that everyone around me knew how I felt about you before me,’’ said Alec jokingly and he shook his head. ‘’I’m such a dense idiot, huh,’’ said Alec and Magnus quickly shook his head.

‘’No, Alec, no you’re not,’’ said Magnus and Alec arched his brow. ‘’I mean then that makes both of us,’’ said Magnus and winked. ‘’I know how you feel, I tried fighting it myself. I made so many excused to myself for the things that I’ve been feeling,’’ he said. ‘’It’s tough to open your heart again and allow yourself to fall in love,’’ said Magnus and Alec glanced at him.  _ Love.  _ ‘’I mean giving it a new possibility, the chance to find someone, it wasn’t easy for me either, Alec, so you don’t have to explain it because I get it,’’ said Magnus and then made another little pause and glanced at Alec, who was now gazing down as well. ‘’But I’m glad I did because,’’ he said. ‘’I think I’ve found someone special and incredible,’’ said Magnus, winking and Alec flushed a little bit and he then sighed happily. 

‘’Yeah?’’ asked Alec as his smirk was growing.  _ Magnus called him amazing!  _ And Alec was just all over the place. Oh, right, he needed to say something back as a compliment, but Alec’s brain was mush and it was hard to really think of something romantic, but he still managed to blurt out a compliment. ‘’Not as amazing as the person I’ve found,’’ said Alec back and Magnus snorted. Oh, that was so, so cheesy, but he didn’t even mind it. Still, they needed to discuss what that meant - they’ve finally confessed their feelings for each other. They both  _ liked _ each other, but that didn’t equal the two of them actually being in an actual relationship. 

Magnus really did like making things way too complicated for himself. But he needed constant reassurance. It was just how life has made him. ‘’Such a flirt,’’ said Magnus and Alec rolled his eyes. If he was going to be made fun of, he was taking that compliment back. ‘’Fuck,’’ said Magnus and Alec quickly glanced up, worried. ‘’Oh, it’s nothing, I’m just really,  _ really _ happy,’’ said Magnus and then Alec just nodded in agreement, because he was overjoyed as well. 

‘’So,’’ said Alec because he was wondering the same things as Magnus. ‘’Does that make us exclusive, or?’’

‘’I mean haven’t we been all this time though?’’ asked Magnus, joking, but Alec knew that he had a point and even though they were both laughing, Alec nodded eventually. ‘’But,’’ said Magnus and Alec quickly stopped laughing. ‘’I do like how you’re thinking, I,’’ he said. ‘’I would like that, yes,’’ said Magnus. ‘’Officially start a relationship with you,’’ he then said, clearing up any doubt that could be there left and he then took in a deep breath. ‘’If you’d like.’’

‘’Yes,’’ said Alec quickly. ‘’Of course, I would,’’ mumbled Alec and then made another pause and Magnus smiled because that was such great news - he couldn’t stop smiling. ‘’Starting a serious relationship with you would be amazing,’’ he said and then puffed his cheeks. Okay, he was talking too much, wasn’t he? In the end, he just leaned back in the chair and just decided to shut up. He glanced up and he saw that Magnus was again laughing, arching his eyebrow.

‘’Let’s just,’’ said Magnus and Alec cocked his head to the side. ‘’Let’s take things slowly and see how it goes from there on?’’ asked Magnus and Alec nodded .Yes, Magnus made a lot of sense.  _ Slow was good, yes, nice and steady for them to be both sure of things.  _ ‘’How does that sound?’’ asked Magnus and Alec chuckled shyly.

‘’Um, perfect,’’ said Alec and Magnus nodded, both of them looking at each other again and they just laughed in unison.  _ Great, now that all of that was cleared up, Alec felt a lot better.  _ Magnus was happy as well and he just licked across his lip and glanced over at Alec’s lips.  _ Fuck, he wanted to kiss him so much.  _ Magnus’ heart started racing again when he noticed that Alec was leaning in for a kiss and he breathed out, going in for that kiss as well, but then Alec’s stomach rumbled and Alec whined. ‘’This doesn’t sound good though,’’ he whined and glanced over at the bathroom. ‘’I’m so sorry,’’ he said, feeling sick again and Magnus just shook his head.

‘’Nope, it’s fine,’’ said Magnus softly and Alec just raced towards the bathroom.

It was decided - Magnus was staying over at Alec’s place for that day; the other clearly needed someone to take care of him and Magnus was more than happy to volunteer! 

* * *

“Feeling better?” asked Magnus and Alec just nodded as he was climbing onto his bed. All of that excitement before tired him out and he needed a little rest. Luckily for him, Magnus seemed to be staying and Alec was overjoyed about it and he just happily sighed and nodded. He felt a lot better, it was a few hours later and Alec was just having the best day ever despite the awful hangover that was staying with him for the entire day, so it seemed. He didn’t mind it one bit because having Magnus over made all of the side effects of the hangover disappear. Almost. The main thing was - he finally got around telling Magnus how he felt about him and it’s been a while since he has been this happy.

“I’m okay… ish,” said Alec and smiled a little bit. Magnus smiled as well and then sat down next to Alec, sitting on the edge of the bed, but he didn’t get closer to him. Though he would love to cuddle a little bit, but he wasn’t sure if Alec was much of a cuddler or not. They didn’t really cuddle before and he just clasped his hands together and Alec just arched a brow. Magnus was staying so far away? Pouting, Alec sighed. “You know, you can come closer,” said Alec and Magnus smiled. 

“Okay, good,” said Magnus and crawled next to Alec and then smiled again. “I just wasn’t sure if you’re much of a cuddler,” said Magnus and then rubbed the back of his neck. “I mean I personally am, but Camille never was, so I kind of got deprived of cuddles,” said Magnus sadly and Alec’s eyes widened - oh, now, how dared she? Alec was always a big fan of cuddles and he just scoffed and he bit his lip softly and signed Magnus to come even closer. Now that things have been confessed, they could be a lot more touchy-feely with each other and honestly, Alec loved it.

“I love cuddles,” said Alec softly and Magnus sighed in relief. Good. “I’ll never deprive you of that, I promise,” chuckled Alec and as soon as Magnus came closer, he wrapped his arms around Magnus’ waist and pulled him even closer, pulling him down with him and he nuzzled next to him and he then glanced up, Magnus smiling.  _ Oh, this was really, really nice.  _ He really missed something like this. Just feeling someone close to him.  _ Not in a sexual way.  _ “This is okay?” asked Alec and Magnus smiled and nodded.

“Yes,” said Magnus and placed a hand upon Alec’s hair and gently ruffled his hair and Alec just sighed in relief and then took in a deep breath. “It’s just perfect, truly,” he said and they laid like that for a little while until Magnus decided to ask something. “Can I ask you something?” asked Magnus and Alec nodded.

“Shoot.”

Magnus chuckled. “When did you realise that you were into me like  _ that? _ ” asked Magnus curiously and Alec glanced up and then looked down a little bit. “It’s okay if you don’t want to tell me, I was just curious,” said Magnus and Alec shook his head. No, it wasn’t like that. He was just surprised by the question, that was all. Honestly.

“If I’m completely honest,” said Alec and Magnus hummed. “Probably on our trip,” said Alec and Magnus smiled softly. Yes, it was the same for him too, actually. “Well, I finally admitted it to myself after we got ourselves off after that hot phone call,” said Alec and Magnus chuckled. Oh, yes, he fondly remembered that one. That was really, really nice phone call. They should try it again once. Very soon. “And you?” asked Alec softly.

“After you kissed me,” said Magnus and then grinned. “The prank pic we took for Camille, it was then,” said Magnus and placed his hand over his chest and sighed happily. “That was really a very a moment of enlightenment," said Magnus and Alec couldn't lie - that was probably it for him too. But he was still too stubborn to admit it back then and he just hummed in delight. "Anyway, your tummy all okay?" joked Magnus and Alec nodded.

"All better thanks to the tea and soup you made me," said Alec sheepishly and Magnus smiled. That was good.

"Sure you don't want one of my magical tummy rubs?" teased Magnus and all that Alec did was take Magnus' hand and then he placed it on top of his stomach.

"I didn't say that," said Alec and Magnus chuckled.  _ Alec was so adorable.  _ Magnus placed a kiss upon Alec's temples, but then the other turned his head up and cupped Magnus' chin and leaned up, capturing Magnus' lips in a slow and soft kiss and Magnus smiled after Alec pulled back. Magnus then leaned down and placed a kiss on top of Alec's lips again.


	13. Chapter 13

‘’Alec, can I go to your office?’’ whined the eleven year old, Max, Alec’s brother and Alec glanced at his younger brother and shook his head. ‘’Oh, come on, why not?’’ he asked and Alec sighed, rolling his eyes and he tried not to be too grumpy. He picked Max up from school during his lunch break and was with him. Robert was coming to pick him up in an hour because he was going to drive Max over to his tutor. Alec didn’t really mind picking him brother up, but he didn’t like when he got like this… whiny. Alec pressed his lips together and then just clasped his hands together. ‘’Dad won’t show up for a long time, let’s finish this food and then-then let’s go to your office,’’ said Max because he didn’t get to see Alec’s office a lot and he just wanted to see how it looked like when it was all busy. Usually he visited Alec when everyone was already gone for the day, but now it was still busy and the boy wanted to go see everyone in action. To him it was really exciting, but it annoyed Alec.

‘’I don’t want my boss to bite your head off,’’ said Alec and Max started laughing. ‘’Yes, yes, you laugh now, I’d be interested to see how brave you’d be if you’d look into her eyes. There’s no soul in there, Max. Let’s stay away from the evil place and let’s just hang out here. Look, here they have food,’’ he said and then clasped his hands together. ‘’Let’s just eat and wait for dad here,’’ he said, his eyes begging Max to drop it, but the boy was still pouting, sulking and he just mumbled something under his breath, but then continued eating his pasta and Alec rolled his eyes. Max was a lot like Alec, easily offended and was holding a grudge for a long time. ‘’I’ll buy you ice cream,’’ said Alec, trying to make it up to his brother and Max just looked at him.

‘’Alec, I’m not five,’’ said the boy and Alec snorted. ‘’Buying me ice cream isn’t going to solve things,’’ he said and Alec just crossed his arms on top of his chest and then started laughing. It was true though, his brother had grown up a little bit. A few years ago, ice cream made everything okay, but now it was more complicated and Alec huffed under his breath and he just clicked with his tongue. ‘’But if you wanna chip in a little bit, I’m saving up for this new game that-’’ started Max and Alec was again laughing because his brother was indeed obsessed with video games and in the end he just bit his lip. Max was hilarious at times. But he was always a good kid.

‘’Tell you what,’’ said Alec and Max glanced up at him. ‘’After we’re done with the food and while we’re waiting dad how about we go to that store around the corner?’’ asked Alec and Max’s eyes lit up because he knew exactly which one Alec had in mind. He had seen it on their way to the restaurant - they were selling video games and he wondered if they had something cool in there. ‘’And I’ll buy you something there instead,’’ said Alec and Max’s eyes lit up and he then took in a deep breath -  _ no.  _ It didn’t feel right because their parents have been always teaching them that you should save up the money for something and he had been saving up his allowance for a while now. Taking money from Alec just like that didn’t feel right and he just huffed under his breath.

‘’I’ll just look,’’ said Max in the end and Alec arched a brow. ‘’To see if there’s something new out there,’’ he said and Alec frowned even more. He thought that Max would be delighted? Rubbing the back of his neck, Alec didn’t really know what to think, but he wanted to spoil Max a little bit. It’s been a while since he got something for him and his birthday was soon coming up, so why the hell not? ‘’Mom and dad always say that if you want something, you should-’’ started Max and Alec snorted and then finished his sentence.

‘’You should save money and buy it yourself, I know Max, I’ve heard that more than once,’’ said Alec and was laughing. ‘’Come on, I wanna buy you something nice. Your birthday is coming soon,’’ said the older Lightwood and Max thought about it - Alec did raise a very good point. ‘’Let me spoil you,’’ he carried on and Max quickly nodded. Okay, yes, why not? Alec made good points and he was laughing, happily eating his meal and he just sighed happily. Alec was the coolest older brother ever and he was just happily trying to finish up the food as fast as he could, literally stuffing his face with it and Alec was laughing again. ‘’Now, now, the store isn’t going anywhere,’’ said Alec.

‘’Yes, but I need time to pick out the game,’’ said Max, his mouth full with food and Alec snorted and then sighed happily. Kids really did grow up very fast and he just leaned back in his chair and continued eating his food. However, what they didn’t really know was the fact that someone was watching them from afar. And that someone was nobody else but Magnus, who was just around the corner. The plan was to go surprise Alec while both of them were on their lunch break and he thought that he’d run into Alec in the restaurant, it was one of his favourites ones to come over while it was time for lunch. But he didn’t expect Alec to be in the company of his younger brother.

Magnus did meet Max Lightwood before, but it was very briefly. It was at the wedding and a few times prior to that, so he knew who the boy was, but that was pretty much it. He was meaning to go over to their table and to say hi, but he decided to stand back a little bit for the time being because he wanted to see how Alec was with kids and the truth was he was pretty amazing. Technically Max wasn’t a kid anymore, but still they seemed to be pretty close and Magnus’ smile was growing because Alec was so adorable as he was chatting there with his younger brother and he huffed under his breath.

_ Alec seemed to be great with kids.  _

Shaking his head, Magnus took in a deep breath and he clasped his hands together. He didn’t want to look too much into it, but given his bad past experience, he also wanted to be with someone that was good with kids, which Alec was. Again, they were taking things slowly, but it just warmed his heart up to see it. Camille was never the one to approach the kids, she avoided them as much as it was possible - thought that seemed to be completely changed, somehow. It didn’t matter, Magnus knew that he was reading too much into it. Still it was adorable to see Alec interacting with his brother and he just placed his hands on top of his sides and then decided that he needed to do something. He was just standing there and staring - he didn’t want someone to think that he was a creep or something like that. So, Magnus decided to go there and just say hi to them. He wasn’t going to stay around for long, even though it was his plan at first - he was going to get going, he didn’t want to be interrupting. Still, he wanted to talk to Alexander, even if it was just for a couple of minutes. 

‘’Hi,’’ said Magnus, stepping over to Alec and Max and Alec quickly looked up and his eyes widened a little bit when he saw Magnus standing there and his cheeks reddened a little bit -  _ what was Magnus doing there?!  _ Oh, maybe he did send him a text or something like that, but he really didn’t have the time to respond and he quickly pressed his lips together and he then glanced at Max, who also looked up and was quite surprised to see Jace’s wedding planner there and he then glanced at Alec and then back at Magnus. Oh, they were friends? He didn’t know that! ‘’Sorry if I’m interrupting, I happened to be around the corner and since you’re here I decided to say hi,’’ said Magnus. Ah, he was blabbering again, wasn’t he? But he was just so happy to see Alec. Okay, maybe he needed to tone it don wa little bit? Just a little bit, but not too much because that was kind of impossible anyway.

Alec was so happy to see Magnus and he just bit his lip and took in a deep breath, shaking his head. ‘’No, you’re not interrupting at all. Max and I were just grabbing some lunch, isn’t that right?’’ asked Alec and Max nodded, not minding the new company too much. He liked making new friends and Magnus seemed cool from what he knew about him. ‘’You’ve met Max, my little brother before, right?’’ asked Alec and Magnus nodded, waving to the boy excitedly and the other just nodded as well. ‘’Max, don’t be rude, say hi,’’ whispered Alec, but Magnus could hear it anyway and he snorted. Max narrowed his eyes, not really realising why his brother was getting so worked up about everything, but still he waved back.

‘’Hi,’’ said Max in the end, continuing to eat and Alec just laughed, shaking his head.

‘’Kids these days,’’ said Alec. ‘’Sometimes you just wish they’d have  _ better _ manners,’’ said Alec through his teeth, but was still joking of course and Max just shrugged, because he didn’t know what Alec’s deal was. Also that pasta was too, too good and Magnus just smiled because he could tell that Alec was trying really hard for Max to leave a good impression on Magnus, but honestly, it was okay. Alec didn’t have to do so much. Also, Max was at that age that he didn’t really liked to be bothered and he just chuckled and took in a deep breath.

‘’Nice to meet you again, Max,’’ said Magnus and Max nodded.

‘’For sure, Mr Bane,’’ said Max and Alec smiled proudly -  _ good, so the kid did have some manners!  _ Alec then nodded and wondered maybe Magnus wanted to join them for lunch? Though he did promise Max to go to that store that was around the corner and just- Hmm, he had a lot on his mind and while Alec was thinking about it, Magnus just waved it off because he didn’t like that Max was being so formal with him.  _ After all he was dating his brother, so he didn’t have to call him mister.  _ That, plus it made him feel old!

‘’Oh, just Magnus is fine,’’ said Magnus happily and Max glanced at Alec.

‘’You see, Magnus is chill, he gets it,’’ said Max and then glanced over to the empty chair in the opposite site of him and he smiled. ‘’Alec, can Magnus join us for lunch?’’ asked the boy and Alec quickly nodded.  _ Good, Max brought it up himself!  _ Though if they all really hurried up, there could still be time to get to that store. Alec just really didn’t like breaking promises that he made and he already promised to Max, so!

‘’Of course, yes, please,’’ said Alec, stumbling over his words and Magnus smiled.

‘’You sure it’s okay?’’ asked Magnus. ‘’I mean, I’m not interrupting you two?’’

‘’Of course not,’’ said Alec and then glanced at Max and then back at Magnus and just decided to come out and say it.  _ He didn’t really want to hide their relationship in front of his family.  _ He already told Izzy and Jace about him and Magnus starting to date and they were happy for them, of course, but also were just happy that it finally happened because they were both taking far too long to come clean about their feelings to each other. ‘’I mean I’d be a terrible boyfriend if I wouldn’t wanna hang out, right?’’ asked Alec and then his eyes travelled over to Max, whose jaw dropped.  _ Mister Bane was Alec’s boyfriend?!  _ Now that was something that he didn’t expect, but they were acting kind of weird before. So he could tell that there was something going on!

Magnus was also taken back a little bit, but in the very best way that there it was. He didn’t really know what to expect because they were  _ taking it slow,  _ but he was so happy to see that Alec had just introduced him to his brother as his boyfriend. They didn’t put any labels on their relationship yet, at least to Magnus’ knowledge, but he loved it when Alec called him his  _ boyfriend.  _ It made his heart flutter with happiness and he just sat down and then glanced at Alec, who winked and Magnus just sheepishly smiled back.  _ Magnus was flushing and Alec was quite proud of that discovery.  _ He made Magnus blush! It wasn’t the first time, but still!

‘’So,’’ said Magnus, taking in a deep breath. Max didn’t even realise how huge it was what Alec had just said. ‘’Let’s see what on the menu then,’’ said Magnus, quickly grabbing onto the menu and he took in a deep breath. His heart was beating fast, oh he was nervous and he didn’t even know why.  _ Alec was staring at him way too much.  _ Magnus kept the menu over his face and tried to focus on reading. 

‘’Try pasta, it’s so good,’’ said the boy and Magnus peeked from behind the menu and giggled.  _ In the most adorable way that he possibly could.  _ Alec’s heart was also beating fast and he couldn’t tear his eyes away from Magnus. ‘’Oh and also the pizzas they have are very good,’’ recommended the boy, Magnus smiling and he nodded.

‘’Okay, I’ll go with that then,’’ said Magnus and ordered himself some pizza, clasping his hands together. Alec was very glad that Max wasn’t like Jace and Izzy, they would be already asking questions about their relationship and honestly Alec didn’t know if he was comfortable enough to discuss it with them out in the open like that. 

‘’They have the best pizza in town,’’ said Alec and Max nodded.

‘’It’s true,’’ said Max and Magnus smiled.

‘’Good thing I ordered it then,’’ said Magnus and then started tapping with his fingers against the desk and he glanced at Alec, who was just smiling. ‘’So, Max,’’ said Magnus and the boy looked him again. ‘’Joining your brother at the office later?’’ joked Magnus and Max wrinkled his nose.

‘’Nope, he doesn’t let me visit, he says the place is too evil,’’ said Max and Alec snorted.

‘’I’m just trying to protect you,’’ said Alec. ‘’Imogen in scary,’’ said Alec and huffed under his breath. Magnus and Max both snorted, but Alec then looked at Magnus, who quickly stopped laughing and he just nodded. ‘’It’s no place for a child,’’ said Alec and Max glanced at him and pouted.

‘’I am not a kid,’’ whined Max and Alec smiled.

‘’Of course not,’’ said Alec and Max rolled his eyes. ‘’But I am taking you to that store before dad arrives,’’ said Alec quickly and Max’s eyes lit up again. Magnus was curious -  _ a store?  _ Magnus was a big fan of shopping so he was quite interested to see what kind of shopping were the two of them going to be doing. All kinds of shopping was interesting and fun though! There was just something about getting new stuff that was always exciting, no matter what it was!

‘’Is that shopping that I hear?’’ asked Magnus, perking up. ‘’Oh, I love shopping, what will you two be going after?’’ asked Magnus excitedly and Alec snorted a little bit. He didn’t really expect Magnus to be into gaming like Max was, but he still decided to tell him about it.

‘’I’m just taking Max to this video game shop around the corner,’’ said Alec and Max’s eyes lit up even more. ‘’It’s really-’’

‘’Oh, which one?’’ asked Magnus. ‘’I mean what kind of games do you like, Max?’’ 

Max was happy to hear that Magnus asked him something.  _ Alec’s previous boyfriend didn’t really like him much, so he was really surprised.  _ In a good way! ‘’I like games where you build stuff,’’ said Max happily. ‘’Like building cities and stuff like that,’’ said Max happily and Magnus perked up.  _ Oh, he liked those too!  _ It was kind of organising a party. Slow progress, build and prepare, make a plan! ‘’There’s this new game I’ve been excited about, it’s-’’ he started and then both him and Magnus said the title of the game out loud in unison and Max’s jaw dropped. 

‘’No freaking way, it’s out already?’’ asked Magnus and Max nodded. That was so cool that Magnus also liked that same game! ‘’Oh, Alec, we gotta get going, I need to get my hands on it,’’ said Magnus, but then the waiter came with his pizza and he sighed very disappointedly, but he promised to himself that he was going to be finishing pizza fast and Alec was just smiling. He didn’t know that Magnus was into gaming, but at the same time… he was happy. He found out another thing about Magnus. And he loved it.

And Max? Oh, he liked Alec’s new boyfriend a lot!

* * *

Alec smiled as he knocked onto the door of Magnus’ loft and then took in a deep breath and tried to contain his excitement. It was just a couple of days later, it was weekend and he finally had the time to go and see Magnus. It wasn’t really an official date because they were just going to be staying inside and hang out, watch movies and eat junk food, but at the same time it felt different from the other times. Things have felt a lot different since they confessed feelings to each other, but in the most pleasant of ways. Though maybe he shouldn’t have introduced Magnus as his boyfriend to Max because he ended up blurting it all out to their parents and they were already asking Alec when Magnus was free for a family dinner.  _ So much for taking it slow.  _

But he was still happy about it that his parents were so supportive about it, biting into his lip and he just smiled when the door finally opened and he smiled from ear to ear when he saw Magnus standing there and he quickly leaned in, kissing Magnus’ lips, the other quickly kissing him back. ‘’Mmm, hello, Alec,’’ said Magnus happily and then placed his hands on top of Alec’s chest and glanced down because he could see that Alec brought something. ‘’Bottle of wine?’’ asked Magnus and snorted.

‘’Yes, I wanted to bring something,’’ said Alec. ‘’It sounded fancy, so I figured you’d like it,’’ said Alec and Magnus chuckled yet again, thanking his boyfriend and he carried the bottle wine into his kitchen, Alec taking in a deep breath and he could see that Magnus had prepared for his visit. In the living room, the coffee table was already filled with all sorts of treats and he just smiled. ‘’You’ve been busy as well,’’ commented Alec as Magnus came out from the kitchen and he smiled sheepishly.

‘’Yes,’’ said Magnus. ‘’I didn’t know what you’d be in the mood for our movie date, so I kind of threw it all together,’’ said Magnus and Alec chuckled. That was so cute.  _ Also did he say a date?  _ Oh, Alec liked the sound of that and he stepped closer to Magnus again, cupping his face again and he kissed Magnus softly again and Magnus glanced down as they parted. ‘’I, um, I could really get used to this,’’ said Magnus because he liked how affectionate Alec was and Alec beamed at him.

‘’Yeah, you better,’’ said Alec, joking and he planted one final kiss upon his temple before he pulled back and he then sat onto the couch, Magnus quickly going over to him and he climbed up on the couch next to Alec and took in a deep breath. ‘’You really did prepare a shit ton of food,’’ commented Alec and Magnus just gave him a little pout. ‘’I’m so ready for it all,’’ said Alec and Magnus scooted next to him. ‘’And what are we going to be watching?’’ asked Alec curiously.

‘’I picked out my favourite musical,’’ said Magnus and hummed. ‘’I don’t know how big you are on musicals, but if it isn’t your cup of-’’

‘’Oh, it’s lovely,’’ said Alec and Magnus’ smile returned. ‘’I mean I haven’t really watched lots of them, but,’’ said Alec and Magnus happily clapped.

‘’It’s time for me to broaden your cinematic palet,’’ said Magnus excitedly and Alec just nodded. Sure, if he wanted to call it like that. Magnus put on the movie and Alec just sat back, but his eyes were on Magnus for most of the time and Magnus started laughing. ‘’Alec, the movie’s on the TV, you’re gonna drill holes into my head if you continue staring like that.’’

‘’Shit, was I so obvious?’’ asked Alec and Magnus bit his lip. ‘’Sorry, yes, movie, I am paying attention - totally,’’ said Alec, but he was glancing at Magnus with the corner of his eye again in no less than a minute and Magnus just laughed again because he could feel Alec’s eyes on him and he pressed his lips together and scooted closer to Alec, Alec wrapping his arm around Magnus and he pressed him closer and Magnus happily hummed. Yes, that was the most perfect way to watch the movie. 

‘’Evenings in like this are the best,’’ commented Magnus and Alec had to agree, nodding, holding onto Magnus’ hand and his smile widened a little bit. Alec liked the movie that Magnus picked out for them, it was funny. Somewhere in the middle of it all he remembered that Max told him to tell something important to Magnus and he just chuckled. Magnus looked up. ‘’Hmm?’’

‘’Oh, yes, I just remembered that Max told me to tell you something important,’’ said Alec and Magnus chuckled, but nodded. ‘’He’s proud to announce that he finally passed level twenty today and-’’

‘’No way, he totally beat me already,’’ said Magnus. ‘’Oh, I gotta up my game,’’ said Magnus and Alec was laughing, Magnus’ cheeks reddening a little bit and he cleared his throat. ‘’I kind of get really excited when it comes to things like this, excuse me. It’s silly and-’’

‘’Not silly, it’s adorable,’’ said Alec and Magnus smiled.  _ Camille always made fun of him for liking games, told him that he was childish and needed to grow up.  _ That was why it meant so much to Magnus and he just kissed Alec happily. 

‘’Max really is something, huh,’’ said Magnus. ‘’Bless him, he’s a good kid.’’

‘’Yeah,’’ said Alec. ‘’I mean, sure, yes, but thanks to him now my parents are asking me when you’re free for a family dinner,’’ blurted out Alec and Magnus’ jaw dropped. ‘’Relax, I told them to chill, I said we’re taking things slow, so it’ll happen, just not yet, right?’’ asked Alec and Magnus laughed. He has already met Alec’s parents, so he wouldn’t really dislike a family dinner, but yes it was probably a bit too early for it. 

‘’Yep. But that does explain why your parents suddenly added me on Facebook yesterday,’’ said Magnus and Alec’s jaw dropped.

‘’They what?’’ asked Alec, his voice an octave higher and Magnus was laughing. Hilarious. ‘’You didn’t accept, did you? B-both of them?!’’

‘’I didn’t because I wanted to be sure before accepting, but,’’ said Magnus and pulled out his phone. ‘’I gotta accept now,’’ said Magnus and Alec gulped. Oh, he didn’t know if that was such a good idea. ‘’That’s-’’

‘’Bad idea, cancel, Magnus, cancel. Just-’’

‘’Oops, too late,’’ said Magnus and Alec looked at Magnus’ phone and gulped. Yep, there it was, they were friends. Oh, what has he done?! ‘’You’re adorable, Alexander, come on, relax it’s not a big deal and-’’ said Magnus, but then Alec’s phone buzzed and Alec let out a dry laugh.

‘’It’s my parents, wanna bet?’’ asked Alec and Alec read the text out loud. ‘’ _ Son, Magnus accepted my friend invitation on Facebook, does this mean that the family dinner is happening soon? Love, dad, _ ’’ read Alec and then looked at Magnus. His expression was priceless. Magnus was just laughing because Alec’s parents were just adorable - just like Alec and he just kissed him softly and Alec huffed. In the end Alec smiled as well because he couldn’t deny that he was happy about it. 

Not responding right away, Alec went back to watching the movie with Magnus. Still he sent a quick reply soon after it that they were going to discuss the dinner matters.  _ Eventually.  _


	14. Chapter 14

‘’Aww, do you really have to go?’’ whined Alec because Magnus was again heading out of town and the other just gave him a little chuckle and then he nodded. The big wedding that he has been working on was happening in less than a week and he was very much needed there - he needed to prepare everything, to make sure that everything was in order. Still, he didn’t like going there alone, but Alec had work and he couldn’t miss it that time. Besides, Alec was going to be joining him for the wedding during the weekend, right? His offer still stood and now that they’ve been together, he kind of figured that Alec was going to be coming as his plus one.  _ Proper plus one that time.  _ His cheeks reddened a little bit and he then placed his hands on top of Alec’s shoulders and took in a deep breath. Magnus had spent the night at Alec’s, it was morning and he really needed to get going if he didn’t want to be late. 

‘’You know that the wedding is a lost case without me there,’’ said Magnus, winking and Alec nodded in the end, took in a deep breath and then clasped his hands together. ‘’Besides, the wedding is this weekend and then I’m finally taking some time off,’’ said Magnus because he couldn’t wait to get some time off. In the past week or so his dislike for weddings managed to quiet down a little bit because he was so happy with Alec, but still… he needed a little break, to recharge his batteries. It was how he worked and Alec then just nodded, perking up. Right, the wedding was happening that weekend and he was immediately in a good mood again.

‘’Oh, yes,’’ said Alec. ‘’I’m still invited, yes? I mean I really wanna see how you’ll make it all work - the finished results are always the most exciting,’’ said Alec and Magnus beamed at him, nodding and his eyebrows lifted up just a little bit, biting into his lips. His fingers were gently grazing Alec’s shoulders, looking up into his eyes and he just cocked his head to the side, the adorable side of his coming out again and Alec chuckled as well.

‘’Of course you’re still invited, I’ll be insulted if you aren’t there to see the fruits of my labour. This is my baby, I’ve worked hard on it,’’ said Magnus and Alec hummed. ‘’Also, you helped, so you need to be there,’’ he added and Alec rolled his eyes because he didn’t help. He just went along with whatever Magnus said back then, holding Magnus’ side of the argument just to piss Camille off. But even so, he thought that Magnus’ choices were better - being biased or not, he didn’t know how Camille managed to keep her own wedding brand being so successful with the choices that she presented at the start of the trip. Truly, truly bad and tacky. 

‘’I didn’t really do much, remember?’’ asked Alec and Magnus shook his head.

‘’No, no, you did, your opinion was very valuable to all of us,’’ said Magnus and Alec snorted, but he was going to take credit for that after all. It was good knowing that he helped Magnus and sighed. Still he was bummed out that he wouldn’t get to see Magnus until weekend, they’ve been spending most of their free time with each other and Alec had gotten really used to having Magnus over, or being over at Magnus’ place. ‘’And this time, you don’t have to get your own room when you visit,’’ teased Magnus, waggling his eyebrows and Alec just started laughing. 

‘’Yeah, I mean it was kind of a waste of money the first time around anyway,’’ said Alec and winked. Magnus chuckled because they did spend most of their time walking around the town or doing each other in one of their rooms, so yes, it was kind of pointless when one looked at it from that point of view and Magnus just laughed and then hummed in delight. He couldn’t wait for the wedding, he was going to spend more time with Alec in the town that they both loved. It was going to be very romantic, at least he hoped so! ‘’I can’t believe that I’m saying this, but I actually can’t wait to go to this wedding,’’ said Alec and Magnus started laughing because they both seemed to have changed their opinion on weddings, huh? ‘’Man, I’ve changed,’’ he said and Magnus nodded in agreement.

‘’I know, right? For once I don’t feel like I’m selling lies,’’ said Magnus and Alec arched his brow. ‘’Oh, you know with all being in love and the whole happily ever after,’’ he said and Alec sheepishly smiled. ‘’For once it feels like I’m having fun again and I love it,’’ he said and Alec pressed his lips on top of Magnus’ forehead, Magnus narrowing his eyes because he didn’t get what he did to earn the kiss. ‘’Um, what was that for?’’ asked Magnus curiously and Alec gave him a little sly look.

‘’You were adorable,’’ said Alec in the end and Magnus flushed deeply. Alec knew that Magnus wasn’t the one to blush, so he always felt really proud when he saw Magnus blushing. Not to mention that was adorable as hell. Instead of saying something, Magnus leaned up and placed his lips upon Alec’s and the other quickly kissed him back. Before their kisses could get any more heated - like per usual - Magnus quickly pulled away and then hummed and pouted.

‘’Feels almost like a crime to just leave you like this,’’ commented Magnus and Alec kissed his cheek one final time and then forced himself to pull away.  _ Oh it was hard to keep his hands away from Magnus.  _ Since they’ve gotten together and started a more serious relationship, they didn’t really  _ do it yet  _ because they were as they said taking it slow, so it was kind of hard on both of them. But Alec had a feeling that upon his arrival to the wedding location on weekend, the first thing that they were going to do was to bang each other’s brains successfully.

Magnus was of a pretty much the same opinion and Alec then gave him a little wink. ‘’Good luck, Magnus. Hope that Camille won’t be too much of a heinous bitch,’’ said Alec and Magnus just waved it off.

‘’Let her try, she can’t hurt me anymore,’’ said Magnus and Alec nodded. ‘’Okay, I’ll be on my way then. I’ll call you first thing when I’m all settled in the hotel,’’ promised Magnus and Alec just gave him a little nod.

‘’Talk to you soon then,’’ said Alec and Magnus just gave him another nod.

* * *

‘’Of course it’s my fault,’’ grumbled Alec. He was alone in his office, talking to himself and was having just the worst day ever. If Magnus being out from the town wasn’t enough to bring down his mood, Imogen decided to completely ruin his mood. Not just ruin, no, she set it on fire, then stomped all over it and drove a bulldozer over it. He felt like that and he was just angrily eyeing everything that was in front of him and he huffed under his breath. Imogen called him up to his office that day and somehow ended up blaming  _ him _ for the job that didn’t get properly done that he wasn’t even told to do. Alec didn’t even work in the marketing department, but  _ she- _

‘’I wanna go home,’’ whined Alec and then just closed his laptop, leaned back against his chair and just took in a deep breath. Just what was he supposed to do if the other idiots didn’t do their job properly? He didn’t know how to run all of the departments in their company, just what was he supposed to do. That was why all the blame fell on him every single time. He was the only one that did anything actually besides his secretary and a few other good souls that the company had. But most of them were lazy, were slacking off and were just all round horrible people. Alec didn’t really know them, but given that they didn’t do their job properly, he decided that all of them were horrible traitors. Rubbing his temples, Alec took in a deep breath and chewed on his lip.

Alec was supposed to meet up with Izzy for the lunch break, but given how it was all going, he didn’t think that he would be able to make to it.  _ So again lunch from the vending machine it was going to have to do.  _ He didn’t like it, he wanted to leave the company for that hour that he had for the lunch, but no even that was going to be taken away from him. Of course, it was very typical. Others were always outside smoking, drinking coffee, but it was always Alec did- Alec decided that he needed to calm down and stop thinking like that because he was slowly starting to spiral out of control.

‘’Sure, yes, of course,’’ said Alec and glared at the things that Imogen has written to him on the piece of paper. The amount of work that he had on there made his head spin and the thought of actually quitting didn’t cross his mind first if he was being completely honest. But then he thought about looking for job again and how long it took him to get this spot and how much he actually earned and never really was brave enough to hand in his work resignation. He was just supposed to grit his teeth and suffer? Ugh, Alec didn’t know and just shook his head. ‘’Of course, Alec, do this, Alec do that, always shitting me with her shitty-’’ he started, but then bit his tongue because who could know - Imogen could always walk by his door and he just took in a deep breath and then checked up on his phone.

Alec needed Magnus. So he decided to send him a text!

**Alec:** Babe, how is your day going? Imogen yelled at me for something I didn’t even do wrong. Some idiot from the marketing department fucked things up and she blames me for everything. I wanna quit and never come back to this evil place :’-( I wish you were here… or better yet, if I was there. I hate it all. Miss you.

Did he sound desperate? Yes. Because he was. Too desperate? Alec honestly didn’t care and then he decided to send his sister a text as well because he didn’t feel like going out to eat anymore. Still he felt horrible because he  _ promised _ but there wasn’t much that he could do. Alec tapped on his sister’s name among his contacts and then just sent her a short and quick text.

**Alec:** Sorry, Iz, I’m taking a raincheck on that lunch. Imogen is a bitch again, I can’t make it :-(

It seemed that Magnus was busy because he didn’t reply right away, but Izzy seemed to have the time because she replied pretty much right away and she didn’t like the sound of that. She never actually liked Imogen because she took Alec for granted - he was hard working and honestly he was carrying the whole company on his shoulders. So, the reply that Alec got didn’t really surprise him at all.

**Izzy:** No, what, again? I’m not having it, Alec, you deserve the lunch break. 

**Alec:** Ah, well, what can I do? I’ll just eat something from the vending machines again, don’t worry too much, I’m used to it.

**Izzy:** Yes, that’s exactly it, I’m not gonna let her get away with it. All that food from the vending machines isn’t good for you, Alec, you need a proper meal. Don’t worry, though, if you can’t make it to lunch, I’ll bring the lunch to you. And if she has something against it, she can kiss my ass.

Alec snorted and then bit his lip. That sounded nice, actually. Izzy coming over to his office so that they could have the lunch break there. Humming, he nodded and then replied to his sister, feeling better already because knowing that he was going to get some company in an hour or so made him feel a lot better!

**Alec:** Okay, then, bring the lunch over to me. You’re the best, sis <3

**Izzy:** I know.

**Izzy:** Also, if I run into Imogen, I’ll trip her!

Alec started laughing.

**Alec:** Izzy, no! It’s honestly not worth it.

**Izzy:** I know what I’m doing. I’ll make it look like an accident. 

Alec burst out laughing and he just shook his head. As always, Izzy was with her fiery personality and Alec loved it very much indeed. In the meantime, Magnus also replied to his text and Alec’s heart made a little jump from excitement when he saw Magnus’ name written on the screen.

**Magnus:** Oh, you poor thing. Imogen truly doesn’t appreciate how amazing you are and all of the people working there are traitors indeed. You deserve so much more, Alexander, you truly do. <3 I miss you too :-( It’s boring without you here.

Alec pouted and smiled. Adorable, adorable, adorable. Argh!

**Alec:** It’s true! I can’t even make it to lunch break :’-(

**Magnus:** No, no, no, please don’t cry, it’ll be all okay! I can cheer you up somehow <3 Tell me, can I do? I’ll drop everything that I’m doing, I wanna make you smile <3

Alec was already smiling, but still!

**Alec:** You’re the best. How about you send me a cute selfie?

Alec did get a very cute picture from Magnus. More than one and they kept in coming, Alec’s heart bursting with happiness. On one picture Magnus was sending him a kiss, on the other he was just smiling, on the other he was pouting, on the fourth one he was just winking and Alec couldn’t stop smiling, cheeks hurting from smiling too much. Ah, Imogen was all forgotten!

**Magnus:** Did it make you feel better? I can keep on going! ;-)

Alec grinned.

**Alec:** You’re adorable <3

**Alec:** And it did help me a lot. I’m in a much better mood already! You’re like the best boyfriend ever. 

And because Alec wanted to return the favour, he also snapped a quick photo of himself. He didn’t quite like taking pictures of himself, but this one was special because it was for Magnus and he made sure he made an effort. He sent a photo of smiling because he was too awkward to do anything else and his cheeks reddened a little bit because Magnus’ response really was…

… ten texts in a row, filled with only heart emoticons and Alec just puffed his cheeks because that was a bit too much, no?

**Alec:** Stop being so adorable!

**Magnus:** Never, muahahaha!

Alec sighed and then put the phone down - the day was already much better!

* * *

‘’Iz, bless you,’’ said Alec as he was stuffing his face with food and Izzy smiled happily. ‘’You are a genius, sis,’’ said Alec and Izzy just nodded as she was drinking the coke. She, too, was starving and Alec took in a deep breath. ‘’Thank you for bringing this in,’’ he then added and Izzy just nodded and then gave him a little chuckle.

‘’No need to thank me,’’ said Izzy and then hummed. ‘’Pity I didn’t run into your boss, because I had the perfect plan,’’ she said and Alec just quickly shook his head because she really didn’t want that because her day would also get completely and utterly ruined. 

‘’Oh, Iz, is better that you didn’t run into her,’’ said Alec and shuddered. ‘’I keep telling you all that she is a Dementor, you gotta believe me, she would completely suck all happiness out of you,’’ said Alec and then rolled his eyes. ‘’Ah,’’ said Alec and then glanced towards the huge pile of papers that was still waiting for him and he decided to ignore them for now. ‘’That woman has issues though,’’ said Alec and Izzy just snorted.

‘’Tell me about it,’’ said Isabelle. ‘’So, how have you been since you know?’’ asked Izzy and winked.  _ Ah, since he and Magnus have gotten together?  _ They’ve talked about it, of course, but Alec still didn’t tell them all much about it because he was trying to keep it simple and slow, but at certain times it was hard not to ramble too much about how amazing Magnus was. Though usually he jinxed the relationship like that and he just shrugged and then leaned back against his chair.

‘’Normal,’’ said Alec. ‘’I mean things are going well,’’ said Alec and tried his best to keep the smile from spreading too much, but Izzy could see it and she happily grinned too. ‘’But I’m not telling too much because you know what happens if I do, right? I jinx the relationship,’’ said Alec and Izzy just rolled his eyes because that wasn’t his fault. All of the guys that he dated in the past were idiots and they could never compare to Magnus, who was more than amazing. 

‘’Oh, please,’’ said Izzy. ‘’None of your exes can compare to Magnus,’’ said Izzy and winked. ‘’And I’m not just talking about appearance,’’ she added on and then made a little pause. ‘’But, well, all that matters is that things are going well,’’ she said and Alec just nodded and then clicked with his tongue.

‘’Just sucks that he’s travelling again,’’ said Alec. ‘’I really wanna go see him,’’ he said and Izzy hummed.

‘’Oh, the wedding?’’

‘’Yep,’’ said Alec and then smiled. ‘’But I’m headed there this weekend as his plus one,’’ he said and waggled his eyebrows and Izzy giggled. ‘’I can’t believe that I’m saying this, but I’m actually looking forward going to the wedding,’’ said Alec. ‘’I can’t even recognise myself,’’ said Alec and Izzy was just laughing because Alec was hilarious.

‘’Dramatic much?’’

‘’Dramatic, who? Me? Never,’’ scoffed Alec and both of them laughed because both of them knew just how dramatic Alec could actually be. ‘’But, yes,’’ said Alec. ‘’I’m just happy,’’ he carried on. ‘’Mom and dad still whine about the family dinner?’’ he asked and Izzy chuckled and then nodded because Alec wasn’t the only one that was getting asked about. Because their parents didn’t get much response about the dinner from Alec, they decided to ask Jace and Izzy about it.

‘’Oh, yeah,’’ said Izzy and snorted. ‘’But they mean well, Alec,’’ said Izzy.

‘’I know, Iz, but we’re taking things slow,’’ said Alec. ‘’Like no rushing, no nothing. Just one step at a time,’’ said Alec. ‘’You know that I usually don’t really go slow, I just jump in, head first and not really-’’

‘’Heart first,’’ said Izzy, interrupting Alec and the older one nodded.

‘’Good point,’’ said Alec. ‘’I don’t think,’’ said Alec. ‘’But this time I’m smarter,’’ he said and Izzy chuckled. ‘’I mean at least I’m trying to be, but, fuck, I really like him,’’ he then said and Izzy’s smile widened. Yes, she could tell that.  _ A very long time ago she was able to see through them.  _ ‘’I’m trying to go nice and slow, but it’s hard,’’ said Alec and Izzy gave him a little compassionate look.

‘’Huh, we Lightwoods really do fall for people hard, don’t we?’’ she commented because she could still remember how much it sucked before she met Simon. He was different from the others and she then sighed happily. Getting back on track… ‘’I’ve been saying it from the start; there was something between the two of you from the beginning.’’

‘’I suppose you’re right,’’ said Alec and just hummed. ‘’Magnus is just amazing, yes,’’ said Alec and Izzy gave him a little wink. ‘’And very different from the others, which is amazing,’’ he said and Izzy nodded again. Alec then dwelled on it for a little longer, but then his eyes travelled over to the last fries and his eyes lit up. ‘’Mind if I have these?’’ asked Alec and Izzy laughed and shook her head.

‘’Nope, you need them more than me,’’ said Izzy and Alec just nodded.

_ Yep, he did need them. A lot. _

Comfort food.

* * *

‘’Oh, Alexander, it’s so nice to hear you,’’ said Magnus, smiling all the way up to his ears. He was finally back at his hotel room and Alec was back at home, both of them had a long, long day so they were more than happy to be finally reunited even if it was just over the phone and Alec just smiled. He was laying on his couch, too tired to even move and he just pressed his lips together.  _ He loved Magnus calling him Alexander.  _ It never really occurred to him but after they got together, Magnus started calling him by his full name more and more and he liked it.

‘’Alexander, hmm… I like that,’’ said Alec, laughing tiredly and Magnus arched a brow. 

‘’Like what?’’

‘’You calling me by my full name, I usually don’t like it when people call me Alexander, but I love it when you call me by my full name,’’ he explained and Magnus chuckled. ‘’Mind turning the video on?’’ asked Alec eventually and Magnus was immediately up for it.

‘’Of course,’’ said Magnus and Alec quickly turned on his video camera on his phone and he was smiling as he waited for Magnus’ picture to load up and he just grinned when he saw him. ‘’Ah, I missed this face,’’ said Magnus teasingly and Alec looked up and down. Maybe he was even flushing again a little bit and he gripped onto his phone tighter and he shifted his head a bit to the side. ‘’So, Alexander,’’ said Magnus and Alec started laughing because he knew for a fact that Magnus said his full name on purpose and he just hummed.

‘’You’re doing this on purpose, aren’t you?’’ asked Alec and Magnus shrugged.

‘’Doing what?’’ asked Magnus innocently, but he did say it on purpose - he wanted to see Alec’s reaction and it was precious. His adorable little excited smile. Alexander was a lot like puppy at the time and he just bit his lip. ‘’Your devil boss allowed you to rest after that?’’ asked Magnus and Alec shook his head.

‘’Nope,’’ said Alec.

‘’Oh, this isn’t fair,’’ said Magnus and Alec pouted.

‘’I know, I’m too tired to even stand up,’’ said Alec and Magnus perked up.

‘’Oh, you poor thing, you must be starving,’’ said Magnus. ‘’I should have cooked you something before I-’’ he started, but Alec started laughing again. Magnus was precious and he just…

‘’Ah, I love-’’ started Alec and Magnus stopped talking quickly and Alec quickly cut himself off and his heart was hammering hard against his ribcage.  _ Yes, he was just about to tell Magnus that he loved him.  _ Again, it was without thinking, heart diving first and he just huffed. Right, slow, nice and slow. ‘’I love that,’’ said Alec. ‘’Your cooking, yes, would be nice,’’ said Alec and Magnus felt a bit deflated.

_ Oh, but he thought that Alec was going to- _

‘’I’ll prepare something next time, gotta feed my man,’’ teased Magnus in the end and Alec was just smiling as he watched Magnus on his screen. ‘’The hotel room really feels lonely without you though,’’ said Magnus.

‘’So does my apartment.’’

‘’Aww, look at us,’’ teased Magnus and Alec arched his brow. ‘’Missing each other.’’

‘’Yeah,’’ huffed Alec and then decided to talk about something else.  _ Or he would end up blurting something that was too much.  _ ‘’So, um, how was your day?’’ asked Alec eventually and Magnus sighed.

‘’Oh, long,’’ said Magnus. ‘’It all started with the bride…’’ started Magnus his story and Alec was smiling all the way through it. 


	15. Chapter 15

Alec was supposed to be coming over only on Saturday, but as Thursday rolled around he decided that he couldn’t wait much longer, that was why booked a train ticket for Friday morning and he would be arriving over to Magnus in a few long hours, but he didn’t mind it because he couldn’t handle being at work place anymore. Imogen had just gotten even harder on him and he decided that Friday he wasn’t going to be going over to work. He called in and actually contemplated to just quit all together, but he managed to pull himself away from doing such a rash decision. Alec had already packed his things into the suitcase and he couldn’t wait to be finally over at Magnus’ and the fun could finally begin. 

Alec didn’t tell Magnus that he was coming, he wanted it to be a surprise this time around. Yes, Magnus knew that he was coming so it wasn’t much of a surprise, but Alec hoped that Magnus was going to appreciate him coming over sooner because he was really excited. But then again Magnus could be really busy with everything and he wouldn’t even have the time to hang out? Then again it didn’t really matter because all that Alec wanted was to stay close to him and his heart was happily beating inside of his chest and he was barely holding his excitement back, but he had that creepy smile on his face throughout the entire way there because he could tell that he was starting to creep out the guy that sitting in the same compartment as him, but Alec didn’t care. 

Alec wasn’t one to do something so spontaneous to just buy a ticked one day before heading somewhere far away, but being close to Magnus made him do it. That and the evil that was waiting for him back at the office. Of course he asked Izzy and Jace if it was a good idea and both of them were very supportive about it. Jace didn’t even know why Alec wanted to keep working there. Yes, Imogen was a family friend of theirs - Robert’s if they were being more specific - but still… That was also another reason that Alec didn’t quit or ever complained to his parents about the monster that the woman really was. 

So, yes, Alec was heading over to see Magnus sooner and he was just sitting there, trying his best not to check the phone for time every few minutes, but it was hard and those few hours honestly felt like forever, biting into his lip and he was just  _ nervous.  _ But in a good way, taking in a deep breath and he then nodded. Everything was going to be okay, of course Magnus was going to be so happy to see him.  _ Oh, he was going to be so surprised and happy!  _ Alec hoped, at least. And the first thing that Alec was going to do was to kiss him. Not an innocent kiss, no, but he was going to go in deep for it because-

Man, he missed Magnus in more ways than only one. It’s been such a long time and Alec was just…  _ craving.  _ Hunger was there and he just took in a deep breath as he was still on the train, trying his best to keep himself busy with reading the book, but it was useless and somehow he managed to suffer through the long, long ride over there. And the first thing, even though that he was tired as hell after riding the train for such a long time, was book a Taxi and he headed straight over to the hotel, making sure that he gave the driver the correct directions this time and he just smiled because just being back in that town made him feel better. It truly was a magical place. 

And his heart started beating even faster when he saw the hotel finally in the distance after half an hour of the drive. After paying the taxi driver for his services, he quickly hopped over to the hotel to check in and then…  _ Magnus.  _ Alec took in a deep breath and then smiled when the man at the reception glanced over at him and Alec then clasped his hands together and then he hummed. ‘’Um, I’d like to check in,’’ said Alec and the man nodded and then started typing something on the computer and Alec looked towards the stairs.  _ Hurry up, hurry up!  _ He didn’t want Magnus to pass him by in the lobby, he wanted to surprise him in his room!

‘’Yes, of course, sir,’’ said the man and Alec nodded. ‘’I’ll just be needing your name to check on your reservation,’’ he said and Alec’s eyes widened, but then he remembered that since he and Magnus were going to be staying together… oh, he hoped that he told the man that beforehand! Alec cleared his throat and then he just rubbed the back of his head.

‘’Um, Bane?’’ asked Alec and then bit his lip. ‘’I mean he’s already checked in and I’ll be-’’

‘’Ah, you’re Magnus’ friend,’’ said the man and looked up and down, humming. ‘’Oh, you’re just as he described you,’’ he said and Alec bit his lip.  _ Oh, Magnus talked about him?  _ That was adorable! ‘’Yes, yes, he did mention that you’ll be coming over. Alec, correct?’’ asked the man eventually and Alec just nodded.

‘’Lightwood, yes,’’ said Alec and then shifted from one leg to the other. ‘’Magnus talked about me?’’ asked Alec because the curiosity got the best of him and the man just snorted and then nodded.

‘’Yep,’’ said the man. ‘’A few days ago he and a few friends of his got a little bit carried away with the drinking and,’’ he said and just snorted. ‘’He talked about you the whole time,’’ he said and then shook his head. ‘’Somehow he decided to pour out his entire soul to me and even though it was kind of hilarious it was also very, very annoying,’’ he said and Alec pouted.

‘’Magnus isn’t annoying,’’ said Alec.

‘’Of course you’d say that,’’ he said and then handed Alec the key to the room. ‘’You’re all set, Mr Lightwood,’’ he then said and Alec just thanked him and of course didn’t hold anything against him, happily whistling as he was literally running up the stairs, not even allowing the man at the reception to call up the staff that would help Alec carrying the suitcase. Alec didn’t need help because he was literally flying up the stairs and excitement was growing - Magnus was just a few steps and a door away!

* * *

Magnus was laying on the bed, too tired to do anything else if he was being completely honest. Everything was planned, the wedding was going to be happening tomorrow and he was just happy about it. Everything was coming to an end about it and he was excited about it - soon his vacation could begin and he was going to enjoy it. Properly.  _ Ah, yes.  _ Also Alec was coming the next day and a little smile spread across his face and he rolled onto his stomach and turned to his phone, unlocking the screen.  _ Maybe he should give him a little call?  _ Alec was still working, but still, he just wanted to hear his voice a little bit. Biting into his lip, Magnus quickly called Alec, sitting up straight on his bed.

Alec picked up! ‘’Alexander,’’ cooed Magnus as soon as Alec picked up and he was biting onto his lip. ‘’Sorry for interrupting, I know you’re still in your office, but I just wanted to hear your voice for only a few minutes,’’ he said and Alec then took in a deep breath because he was standing in front of Magnus’ hotel room, trying his best to play it cool. ‘’Alec, you there?’’ asked Magnus because Alec wasn’t saying much, but he could hear him breathing and he was breathing rather  _ fast and-  _

Oh, was he-

Magnus swallowed thickly, his mind going places and Alec took in a deep breath. Not going to lie, all of that running did take a toll on him, but he didn’t care. ‘’I’m here,’’ said Alec, still taking his time to catch his breath and Magnus’ grin was growing. ‘’I’m… yep, I’m here,’’ he then added and then he just grinned as well. ‘’Magnus, hi, what are you up to?’’ asked Alec and Magnus just chuckled.

‘’Oh, not much, I’m just taking a little break in my room, but you sound busy?’’ asked Magnus. ‘’Are you-’’

‘’Oh, pssh, busy? No, no,’’ said Alec and then placed his suitcase down. ‘’So, you’re in your room, you say?’’ asked Alec and Magnus nodded.

‘’I am, yes,’’ said Magnus and Alec then grinned and knocked onto the door and Magnus narrowed his eyes because he didn’t remember making any room service. Also, he didn’t invite anyone over - like who could it possibly be?! ‘’Ugh, there’s some idiot at the door, Alexander,’’ moaned out Magnus and Alec was trying his best to hold back his laughter. ‘’Not funny, Alec, they’re interrupting our precious time together,’’ said Magnus and pouted.  _ Oh, if he only knew!  _

‘’Maybe it’s important, go check it out, Magnus,’’ said Alec, holding back his laughter and Magnus narrowed his eyes. No, nothing was more important than that phone call at the moment and he just shook his head. 

‘’Let them wait, I didn’t call them,’’ said Magnus. ‘’I wanna talk to you,’’ he then added on, rolling onto the side and Alec was shaking with laughter. ‘’So, how has your day been? I’ve been on my legs until now so I’m happy that I can finally lay down and-’’ he started, but then the annoying knock on the door appeared again and he grumbled. ‘’Oh my fucking God, leave me alone, I didn’t call, I don’t need your services, I’m chatting with my boyfriend,’’ yelled out Magnus, making sure that the idiot trying to cock block him and Alexander was going to get it.

‘’Open the door, Magnus,’’ said Alec because he was getting impatient.

‘’No,’’ said Magnus. ‘’That would also require standing up,’’ he grumbled and Alec bit his lip.

‘’It’s important, I can guarantee you,’’ said Alec and Magnus suspiciously narrowed his eyes. 

‘’How do you know that?’’ asked Magnus.

‘’Just a hunch and I’m very good at those,’’ said Alec and then bit his lip again and Magnus’ eyes widened.  _ Oh Alec knew that it was important then!  _ Alec was terrible at lying. So that meant that he… oh, maybe he sent him a present?! Magnus was catapulted onto his legs, he didn’t need more encouragement.

‘’You didn’t!’’ said Magnus and his voice got a bit higher and Alec’s heart started hammering because he could hear that Magnus was coming closer to the door. ‘’Did you send me a gift? Oh, you really shouldn’t-’’ he started, but then he opened up the door and Alec took in a deep breath and then pressed his lips together.  _ It was a gift, kind of. He wrapped himself up and shipped himself over to Magnus.  _ Technically speaking. As soon as the door opened, Magnus stopped talking because he could see Alec there  _ in flesh!  _ So much flesh - he was wearing a T-shirt and- 

‘’Surprise, I shipped myself over to you!’’ announced Alec and Magnus covered his mouth, smiling happily as he ended the phone call and he made a step back.

‘’You’re… here,’’ said Magnus and Alec nodded, his heart happily hammering against his chest. He couldn’t tell - Magnus was happy, yes? ‘’I mean… how?’’

‘’So, I took a train and-’’

‘’Not that you dork,’’ said Magnus, suppressing his smile back as much as he could, but then his happiness got the best of him and he just- ‘’I mean how,’’ he said and shook his head. ‘’It’s Friday, you should be working and-’’

‘’I was dying there, I couldn’t work anymore. So I came here to surprise you a day earlier!’’ explained Alec. ‘’I mean if that’s okay or-’’

Alec didn’t get to finish the sentence because Magnus stepped closer to him, hugged his face and kissed him. Alec’s eyes widened a little bit, but he didn’t shy away from kissing Magnus and he hugged his face back and he kissed him hungrily, Magnus happily smiling into their kiss as he was trying his best to pull away, but couldn’t. Before Alec could pull back, Magnus was already kissing him back and Alec was happily humming, kissing Magnus back as their lips grew more desperate, hungrier and heated. Tilting his head to the side, Alec deepened the kiss a little bit by licking across Magnus’ lower lip and the other almost melted right there on the spot as he opened his lips and felt Alec’s tongue brushing against his.

‘’Fuck,’’ groaned Magnus as he managed to pull back a little bit, but Alec kissed him again, their lips colliding together, Magnus feeling Alec’s possessive lips claiming his every little gasp and moan. Alec loved the way Magnus was shivering in his arms as he slid his hands down Magnus’ back, fisting this shirt and Magnus just ran his hands over Alec’s bare arms and he shuddered. Fuck, they were still in the hallway, not being able to keep their hands off of each other. It was impossible, they’ve been just-

‘’I-I think we should, um, get in?’’ asked Alec and Magnus just nodded, Alec grabbing his suitcase and as soon as he did that, Magnus grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him inside of the room, the door locking and as soon as Alec let the suitcase down, Magnus pounced on him, pinning him against the wall and Alec chuckled because someone really was needy, huh? 

‘’I missed you,’’ gasped Magnus against his lips. 

‘’I can tell,’’ said Alec back, winking and Magnus flushed a little bit.

‘’Sorry,’’ said Magnus. ‘’I got too carried away, we should, um, like talk or… I should offer you something to drink or-’’ he started, but Alec cut him in the middle of his sentence by kissing him again. Magnus moaned into their kiss because he could tell that Alec was totally on the same page as him. ‘’Or we could, um, do that, yes,’’ said Magnus, his mind already hazy and his lips were on Alec’s as Alec spun them around and pinned Magnus against the wall.

_ Fuck.  _

‘’Talk later?’’ asked Alec and Magnus nodded. ‘’Now all I want is you,’’ said Alec softly and gently held Magnus’ cheek and then kissed him softly.

‘’Me too,’’ mumbled Magnus and leaned up, pulling Alec down again to kiss him and Alec’s lips melted against Magnus’, the older leaning against the wall so that he could support himself against something as Alec’s kisses were making his knees weak, quite literally so and he was just smiling because he missed this.  _ And he could feel just how much both of them needed this.  _ He wanted Alec to fuck him hard against the wall. Yep. The wall was perfect. ‘’Fuck me,’’ said Magnus and Alec laughed breathlessly.

‘’You’ll be the death of me one day, Magnus,’’ groaned Alec, but he didn’t mind it at all. His fingers were in Magnus’ hair as he was kissing him again, Magnus trying his best to get Alec’s shirt off and Alec was laughing because he could tell just how needy Magnus was. He decided to help him with the shirt in the end, quickly taking it off and Magnus didn’t even take the time to admire the beauty of Alec.  _ Later.  _ First he needed to feel him next to him, inside of him and-

Magnus’ shirt came off next, Alec’s hands roaming around his chest, down to his stomach and then back to his ass, cupping it and Magnus wrapped his arms around Alec’s neck as the other suddenly lifted him up and pinned him against the wall again. As Alec lifted Magnus up, they ended up knocking the painting onto the floor, breaking it and Magnus’ jaw dropped.  _ Fuck, he never broke anything while having sex!  _ He was laughing, Alec joining him in as well and he just-

‘’I’ll pay for it,’’ said Alec and Magnus snorted

‘’Such a gentleman,’’ teased Mangus. 

‘’Maybe we should, um, go over to the bed?’’ asked Alec and Magnus just shook his head. The bed was to far away even though it was literally just a few steps away. He had been wanting for Alec to do him up against the wall - Alec had promised it to him so he better gave it to him. 

‘’You promised the wall,’’ said Magnus and after Alec let him onto the floor turned them around and pushed him against the wall. Before Alec could really do something, Magnus was already on his knees and Alec just moaned as Magnus unzipped his jeans and then pulled them down to the floor together with his boxers, not wasting any time and Alec threw his head back as Magnus took him to the warmth of his mouth, burying his fingers into Magnus’ hair and he smiled as Magnus was sucking him off, soon painfully hard and because it's truly been a while he was really close to coming. Too fast, too- 

"Magnus, stop," whispered Alec and Magnus immediately looked up. Did he do something wrong? His eyes widened.  _ Maybe it didn't feel good? _ But Alec was twitching and leaking so much!

"Something wrong?"

"Oh, fuck, no, I'm just close and-"

"Already?" blurted out Magnus because that was really unlike Alec. But he felt proud! Alec flushed at the question and looked away.  _ It wasn't like that. It's just been a while since he has gotten off!  _ He didn't really have the time or the wish to do it alone since he and Magnus had gotten together, so-

"I just… Haven't. Until we've stopped I also didn't… it's just been a while. Okay?" asked Alec, getting kind of defensive and Magnus just laughed and was surprised in a good way of course.

"I admire your self control," said Magnus and wrapped his fingers around Alec's cock again and Alec's toes curled, biting his lip as he was trying really hard not to come yet. "I couldn't. I mean just yesterday I did it right over there," he said and pointed to the bed.  _ Oh, Alec wanted to hear more!  _ It was a turn on and he wasn't even going to regret coming too soon.

"D-describe it," mouthed Alec.

"There I was on the bed," said Magnus and Alec nodded. "Legs spread," he said and Alec took in a deep breath. "I was riding my dildo, moaning your name… But it wasn't enough, can't compare to the real thing," said Magnus and swallowed Alec back into his mouth and Alec's head was spinning.

Magnus using a sex toy.

Fuck.

Alec wanted to see Magnus riding the thing, biting into his lip and his imagination was running wild. Magnus chuckled as he pulled Alec out of his mouth and licked around the head. "Come for me, it's okay. You've been a good boy holding back for such a long time, so come," ordered Magnus and Alec nodded. All it took were a few strokes and Alec was coming hard, all over Magnus' hand and he was laughing, head still in the clouds. He gasped when he glanced down and saw Magnus licking his fingers clean, soon on his legs again and he winked.

"Feeling better?" asked Magnus and Alec nodded.

"Fuck, yes. I needed it," said Alec and Magnus winked.

"We're not done yet, right?" asked Magnus, guiding Alec's hand down to cup up his hard cock and Alec grinned, pinning Magnus back against the wall.

"Fuck, no," said Alec and claimed Magnus' lips again.

Doing it up against the wall was  _ amazing  _ for them. Not so much for the paintings up on the wall and more fell and broke during their little reunion. 

_ But it was all worth it. _

And Alec made a memo in his mind - next time Magnus was going to show off his skills with that sex toy. The opportunity was too good to pass it

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Basically just an excuse for me to write some smut xD I hope y'all enjoyed it <3


	16. Chapter 16

It was the next day and the day of the wedding was finally there - Magnus was buy whole day, Alec trying to make himself as useful as he possibly could, but in the end, he found out that the way that he was going to make that was to stay back and just watch Magnus work because he didn’t even know what he could do, anyway, so he just stood back and watched Magnus perform his magic, because it truly was magic what he managed to do. The place looked amazing, the reception was like a dream come true and he couldn’t pull his eyes away from the whole thing. The ceremony was already over by then, it was the time for the reception and Alec was more than happy about it because he was starving and dinner was soon to be served, looking around the place and he was just amazed - how that even the same place that it was before? Magnus managed to completely transform it, he was completely and utterly amazed. Everything was just…  _ beautiful.  _

Magnus really did pour his love and soul into this wedding, he liked the finished results and he was just happy. It was a lot of hard work, he had to make a lot of sacrifices to finish the wedding in time, but when it boiled down to it, everything was worth it. The bride and the groom were beyond amazed with everything and they looked just so happy and his client’s happiness was everything that mattered to him. It was magical evening after all and the only that thing wasn’t magical was that he and Alec had to sit with Camille and her husband, but that didn’t really come as a surprise. The tables came for four people and since Camille and Magnus were both wedding planners - it was only to be expected, but he didn’t even care about Camille, because Alec was there with him and that was all that mattered.

_ Alexander looked amazing in a tux.  _ Not to mention that Alec also liked seeing Magnus in a tux; he mentioned about three times already and Magnus could tell that Alec was drooling every time that he was looking at him, making Magnus flush, but he liked the attention and he was just happily grinning as he was looking at Alec, who was trying his best not to stare too much, but it was impossible and he was just shamelessly staring at Magnus as they have all seated down and Magnus was just laughing, taking in a deep breath and he bit his lip. Camille was again trying to stand out at the table, but she didn’t get anywhere. Yes, she looked stunning in her little black dress, but nobody really cared about it. 

Scott was just sitting there, trying his best to just survive the evening and then me finally on his merry way, but Camille was still trying to parade their  _ happy _ relationship around, but it wasn’t really working because Magnus and Alec were completely lost in their little bubble - it was such a magical and romantic evening behind them and Magnus somehow didn’t want it to end. “Magnus, you’ve really outdone yourself,” said Alec eventually after he remembered how speech worked and Magnus smiled happily and then nodded, humming along as he looked around. The place looked even better than he first imagined and he just happily leaned against Alexander, who was happily looking around the place.

“Thank you, angel,” said Magnus and then looked over at the happy couple and grinned. “They look so happy and that’s all that matters, all of that work was worth it,” said Magnus and he knew for a fact that Camille wasn’t going to appreciate Alec giving all of the credits to him. It was true that Camille also worked hard on it, but she also gave all of them a hard time about it because she was always messing things on purpose and Magnus was still somewhat convinced that she was doing it on purpose. No because she wanted to ruin the wedding, but it was the attention that she craved, but her plan didn’t really work out in the very end and Magnus was very happy about it. “And you helped of course,” said Magnus, but didn’t look at Camille and her jaw just dropped -  _ how did Alec even help?!  _ He did nothing and- “These vases that you decided to go with truly are stunning.”

“Yes, but you were the one that picked them out,” said Alec happily and winked. Magnus happily nodded and then just bit his lip and looked up finally, his eyes meeting Camille’s, who didn’t look impressed at all and she just looked over at Scott, bitching about it to him and Magnus just took in a deep breath. He really didn’t want the evening to end up in a fight because they were all supposed to be having a good time - weddings were supposed to bring people together, so he decided to be the bigger person and  _ apologise.  _ It was a hard pillow to swallow, but well he really wasn’t in the mood. 

“And of course Camille,” said Magnus quickly and Camille glanced back at him and narrowed her eyes. Magnus was suddenly being nice to her? Camille wasn’t the only one what was confused and Alec arched a brow because he didn’t get it, but he just sat back and didn’t say anything. He was going to ask Magnus about it later because he was kind of curious what made him be nice to her of all people. “In the end it all worked out, didn’t it? Good call on the flowers,” said Magnus, really trying to be nice, but Camille just scoffed and Magnus’ eyebrow twitched because he really didn’t like it.

“Of course, if it wasn’t for me the whole thing would end up being a disaster, right, Scotty?” asked Camille and the only thing that the poor man could do was nod because he knew better than to disagree with her. “Ah, yes, thanks to me this whole evening has been a blast,” said Camille and then looked around. “Look at them, darling, they’re almost as happy as us,” said Camille, pointing to the newlyweds and Alec tried really hard not to laugh but if that looked  _ happy _ to her than she was really mistaken. She might had been happy but Scott was miserable and he could see it a mile away. Why did he even put up with her again? Her looks? 

It wasn’t because he was gay, but Alec really didn’t get it what was so special about Camille. Maybe it was because he knew her  _ inner _ beauty - or lack of it - so he couldn’t really understand what… Scott could do so much better then again, they were both the cause of Magnus’ heartbreak and he quickly stopped feeling bad about him and he just glanced back at Magnus, who was looking over at Alec. He was over it - he didn’t want to be nice to Camille anymore and Alec just scoffed. “If this is what happiness is then I’m a pope,” said Alec and pointed to Scott. “Seriously, man, why are you with her? It can’t be just good looks - is it the money?”

“How dare you,” said Camille and bit her lip. “Such a rude thing to say,” she said and Alec just nodded.  _ Right, Scott was the cash cow anyway.  _ He really didn’t get it and he just stopped thinking about it because he could feel the headache coming up and he just looked over at Magnus, who reached over for his hand and they linked their fingers together, Alec happily humming along and he just managed to completely forget about Camille and her rude self.  _ Alexander was there and that was what he should be focusing on anyway.  _

“Darling, later we will go dancing?” asked Magnus hopefully and Alec just looked over at the dance floor and he hummed. He wasn’t much of a dancer, he really sucked at dancing, but in the end he just nodded because he could feel that Camille was eyeing them and Magnus happily leaned up against him and pressed a kiss against his cheek, making Camille roll her eyes and Alec just beamed at Magnus.

_ He was so glad to be there! _

* * *

It was a little bit later into the evening and Magnus was over there at the bride, Alec staying over at the table, but he soon found out that it was probably a big mistake because Scott went out to smoke and he was stuck there alone with Camille, biting into his lip and he then took a big sip of the wine and glanced over at Magnus. He didn’t know what else to do, he was very uncomfortable sitting there alone with Camille and he tried to somehow distract himself and make the time pass by faster, but it was kind of impossible because Camille was glaring at him for the entire time and Alec just rolled his eyes, tuning her out, but then she just had to speak up because it wouldn’t be a Camille thing to be silent for once. Silence really wasn’t her virtue, she spoke too much and he honestly didn’t know how Magnus put up with that.

“I hope you don’t think you’re special,” commented Camille suddenly and Alec arched a brow and forced himself to look up. He didn’t know what she was talking about, but he had a feeling that she was going to tell him anyway and he just cleared his throat and leaned back against his chair. 

“I’m not sure I’m following,” said Alec, but he had a feeling where Camille was going with that.

“I mean you’re cute, but, this thing between you and Magnus isn’t going to last,” said Camille and Alec gritted his teeth and then he clasped his hands together. God, he really wanted to just stand up and- “For sure now it feels like a fairytale, but it’ll end,” said Camille and Alec just forced himself to keep his mouth shut. But it was so freaking hard. “You’ll learn Magnus’ true colours soon enough,” she said and Alec couldn’t stop himself anymore because how freaking dared she?!

“You know, jealousy really doesn’t look good on you, Camille,” said Alec and Camille didn’t like what he said. “Yeah, I’m not as stupid as you think I am, I can see that you’re jealous of… I’m not really sure what, of our happiness?” asked Alec. “You and Scott are miserable together, so your little trick won’t work. This isn’t high school, so take yourself and your drama away from me and Magnus, we don’t need it,” he said, but Camille of course still wasn’t done.

“Jealous? Please, I’m happier with Scott than I was with Magnus,” she said and Alec scoffed. Yeah, right. “I know, at first Magnus makes you feel special, like you’re his everything, but eventually it gets a little bit too much,” said Camille and Alec narrowed his eyes. What in the world was she even talking about?! “It then soon starts feeling like your relationship with him is smothering you,” said Camille and Alec took in a deep breath.

_ Okay, right, he needed to stay calm. Staying calm was on the priory list of his, he needed to take in a few deep breaths, go to his happy place because if not, Camille was going to- _

“Thank you very much for you very unneeded input,” said Alec and then rubbed the back of his neck. “You’re truly… I don’t even know the word to use for you,” said Alec, trying to keep his voice down. “Being in a relationship with Magnus is the best thing ever, just what in the world are you trying to do here?  _ Smothering _ , where?! Magnus is caring, understanding, kind and-”

“I never said he’s not kind and caring, but sometimes he cares  _ too _ much,” said Camille. “Always-”

“Ah, yes, well that’s called  _ love _ ,” said Alec. “Not surprised that you don’t know what it is because you clearly don’t know what love is and you didn’t love Magnus,” said Alec angrily because he was getting really pissed off.  _ Camille was trying to warn him?!  _ Oh, she was so barking up the wrong tree because if he was going to believe anyone, she was going to be the last person that he would believe. 

“Shut up, you don’t know what you’re talking about,” said Camille. “I  _ loved  _ Magnus and-”

“And you showed that in the most amazing way by cheating on him, good job, Camille, really you deserve an A plus,” said Alec and then leaned back into his chair. Camille’s lips twitched and she took in a deep breath. “Look, please, stop talking and spare yourself the humiliation, because, honey, you honestly don’t know what you’re talking about,” said Alec, Camille’s face red from anger and embarrassment. 

Alec really couldn’t believe it - she was trying to paint Magnus as the toxic one while she was the whole reason why they- “You’ll see soon enough what I’m talking about,” said Camille and Alec rolled his eyes. “I needed an escape from our relationship, Scott was that,” said Camille. “When I wasn’t with him, he was constantly checking up on me, calling me, asking me where I was… his abandonment issues were just-” started Camille and then in a deep breath. “It got too much for me,” said Camille. “He was holding me back and I just couldn’t handle it anymore.”

Alec couldn’t even bear to look at her, he was looking away as he was trying to come up with something that wasn’t going to come out as  _ yelling _ , but it was hard not to yell when she was spewing out such bullshit. Alec didn’t know about Magnus’ abandonment issues, but he knew one thing - if Camille knew about it, then it was such a dick move to just- Alec’s foot was tapping against the floor and he tried to stay calm. But no meditation, no nothing could calm him down and just as he was about to look up and yell at the witch, he saw Magnus standing behind them and his eyes widened. Alec’s heart dropped and for the sake of Magnus he hoped that he didn’t hear what the Wicked Witch from the West said just a few minutes prior to this. But judging by the took that was on his face, he heard everything.

Magnus was over Camille, he so honestly was, but hearing her say all of that - what drove her away from him made him feel like shit. Yes, Camille knew about his abandonment issues, stemming all the way from his childhood, she knew all about it and she took advantage of him in that way more than once. There were times when they fought and their relationship almost came to an end, but she managed to manipulate Magnus to come back to her and in the end she made him out to be the villain. Well, he made him feel like that, so to hear her now say all of that was really disgusting and it made him feel like shit. He wasn’t heartbroken, he was just disappointed. Not surprised but still disappointed. Camille has always been one manipulative witch. 

“Magnus,” whispered Alec and Magnus just stepped back, Camille turning around and Alec could have sworn that he saw a smile on her face. She hid it well though and Alec gritted his teeth; she knew that Magnus was there before she said all of those terrible things? 

“I’m,” said Magnus and made a step back. “I need to go out, I, um, yes, I need fresh air,” said Magnus, his voice shaking with anger. He didn’t want to make a big scene about it because he knew that it would ruin the wedding.  _ Camille knew that as well.  _ Alec was quickly on his legs as well because Magnus should be alone, he needed someone and he quickly ran after him.

“No, Magnus, wait up,” said Alec, chasing after Magnus, whose whole body was shaking because of anger. 

* * *

Magnus was beyond pissed off and yes, he was also hurt, but he didn’t want to admit it to himself, biting into his lip as he was finally outside and he was just in a terrible mood altogether. He didn’t want to go back inside because he didn’t want to be near the bitch again. Just how could she say what she said before to Alec - that he was the reason that she cheated? He pushed her into the arms of another man? That was just disgusting in so many ways and he just took in a deep breath, running fingers through his hair and he took in a deep breath.  _ His abandonment issues didn’t _ -

So what if he cared a bit too much sometimes? He didn’t… he didn’t smother Camille with his attention, did he? She just needed an excuse for herself for leaving him, that was all - Magnus was pretty sure of it. Maybe he did worry a bit too much sometimes, but he didn’t smother people with his attention.  _ Camille was the toxic one not him!  _ Biting into his lip, Magnus angrily kicked the flowers that were in the vase by the side and Alec’s eyes widened because by then he was already outside as well and he quickly stepped closer to Magnus, who was just standing there angrily looking away from him. 

‘’Magnus,’’ said Alec and Magnus quickly turned around and took in a deep breath. Clasping his hands together, Alec stepped closer to Magnus, who was in a terrible mood. ‘’Here you are,’’ he said and Magnus just huffed under his breath, but felt better when he saw Alexander there and he stepped closer to him. All that he wanted was for Alec to hug him and take him out of there, that was all. He couldn’t… ‘’How much of that did you hear?’’ asked Alec carefully and Magnus just shrugged.

‘’Enough,’’ grumbled Magnus.

‘’That’s it, I’m going back in and I’ll end up pouring the champagne all over her new dress, I’ll make it super dramatic, like they do in the movies,’’ said Alec and as he was about to walk inside, Magnus quickly caught him by his hand and managed to crack a little smile.  _ Damn, Alec always knew what to say to make him smile.  _ ‘’I’m sorry you had to hear all of that,’’ said Alec softly and cupped Magnus’ face, who nuzzled into the couch and he happily hummed. ‘’Do you wanna get the hell away from here?’’ asked Alec. ‘’I can take us to our room and we can just watch TV and cuddle.’’

Magnus bit into his lip and he honestly…  _ he loved Alexander so much that it almost hurt.  _ Looking down, a little smile tugged at his lips. ‘’I love that idea, but sadly I’ll be needed here,’’ said Magnus and Alec nodded because he expected something like this. ‘’I just need a little bit time here, that’s all,’’ said Magnus and Alec then nodded.

‘’Should I leave you alone or-’’

‘’Stay, please,’’ said Magnus and then his heart dropped -  _ was that too needy?  _ His heart fell a little bit and he gritted his teeth. That was it, that was what Camille wanted to do by telling Alec all of that and making sure that Magnus heard it - he wanted to plant a seed of doubt into Magnus’ heart and she managed to do it even though he rationally knew that Alec would never think that of him. Alec was just as clingy as him and even though all of that was rationalised in his mind, he still- ‘’I mean if you want to,’’ quickly added Magnus and Alec chuckled and nodded.

‘’Of course I do,’’ said Alec and wrapped his arms around Magnus’ waist and kissed his forehead.

‘’Um, about the things that Camille said-’’

‘’Lies, all lies, Magnus,’’ said Alec and shook his head - he really didn’t want to talk about it because it pissed him off. He was pissed off at Camille and he took in a deep breath. ‘’She is just a raging bitch,’’ said Alec and Magnus chuckled. ‘’Pardon my French,’’ he then said, but Magnus just shook his head. oH, he had a lot more of rich adjectives to add onto that that would perfectly describe Camille, but he decided not to stoop down onto her level. ‘’Are you really okay?’’

‘’I don’t know,’’ said Magnus and Alec bit his lip. ‘’Fuck, I need to be soon in there, the traditional bouquet throwing is about to happen and she wants me to be the one to announce it,’’ said Magnus and Alec rolled his eyes. ‘’Oh, don’t roll eyes, it’s a romantic and special,’’ said Magnus and then hummed. ‘’Also corny, yes, I agree,’’ said Magnus and then chuckled when he saw how happy Alec looked that he agreed with him on it. 

‘’Okay,’’ said Alec and then took Magnus’ hand into his own and then kissed him softly. ‘’But if she tried getting close to you again, I won’t hesitate, I’ll start drama,’’ said Alec and Magnus smiled. He was so adorable. ‘’And we won’t sit with them anymore, we’ll move our table,’’ said Alec. ‘’Somehow,’’ added Alec and Magnus was on board about that - he wasn’t going next to them after that again. A separate table it was going to be. For the time being, Magnus managed to push away all of those feelings of insecurity that were already spreading out more and more and he cleared his throat.

‘’Okay, let’s get going,’’ said Magnus and chuckled as Alec offered him his hand, guiding him back in, Alec scowling Camille all the way through that Magnus was making an announcement and as she tried to get closer to be the part of the event, Alec made sure that she kept her distance, Magnus barely keeping it together as he was making an announcement; it was hard not to laugh at Alec, who was blocking the path to Camille. He was such a complete and utter dork.

All of the young women at the wedding gathered around the bride, who turned around and then threw the bouquet. It crossed Alec’s mind how hilarious and cheesy it would have been if either of them ended up catching the bouquet, but the chances were very slim. Still, if they did, that would be really like…  _ universe playing the biggest joke on them.  _ But that thing only happened in the movies, so you can imagine when the bouquet landed in Magnus’ arms. Magnus just turned around to place the microphone away and was about to walk over to Alec, but then he turned to the bride again out of curiosity and the bouquet was  _ his.  _

‘’No freaking way,’’ said Alec and Camille shrieked.

‘’Huh, what happened?’’ she asked because she couldn’t see past Alec and Alec happily grinned. Oh, this was going to be amazing once she’d find out.

‘’Magnus caught the bouquet,’’ said Alec happily and Camille rolled her eyes.

‘’Yeah, right,’’ she said, shoving Alec away and her jaw dropped when she saw- ‘’No!’’

‘’Yes,’’ said Alec happily and waltzed over to Magnus, who was just standing there and didn’t really know what to do. Everyone was cheering him on, of course, a little smile on his face and Alec quickly stepped to him and gave him a little wink. Magnus glanced down and he then just wanted to laugh it off, but the bride grabbed the microphone and-

‘’ _ Looks like the next wedding that Magnus is going to plan it’s going to be his own _ ,’’ she cheered happily and the others started giggling, including Alec, who just gave Magnus a quick kiss against the cheek and Magnus grabbed onto the bouquet a bit tighter and he took in a deep breath, looking at Camille, who looked pissed and close to throwing another hissy fit. But then she saw  _ it - _ the look on Magnus’ face. It was a sign of doubt and insecurity and she felt her power coming back.  _ Her power over Magnus.  _

‘’That’s a good sign, huh?’’ asked Alec, laughing and he winked. 

Magnus swallowed back the feelings of insecurity again and he just nodded, smiling. He hoped that it was a good sign. ‘’Yeah,’’ said Magnus in the end and just kissed Alec back. He smiled, but as Alec looked away his smile faded -  _ did his fear of abandonment really show so much?  _


	17. Chapter 17

“Raphi, do you think I’m a clingy person?” asked Magnus seriously and Raphael looked up at him and arched his brow because he didn’t get where in the world was that questions coming from. Raphael was visiting Magnus and the sudden tone of Magnus’ questions truly did catch him off guard and he just shrugged and Magnus sighed, deep in thoughts and he just couldn’t shake off the annoying feeling. He has gotten back from the visit, he and Alexander both did and they had a lovely time, but Magnus was just overthinking his every move and word that he said to Alec because even though he didn’t want to admit it, Camille’s words did get to him and he hated it because that still meant that the witch had some power of him, trying his best to shake it off, but at the same time he didn’t want to chase Alexander away as he was falling for him deeper and deeper. Raphael didn’t say anything as he just sat there and Magnus’ heart dropped again and he looked down. They said that silence could tell more than a thousand words and was this what was happening right now? “Raphi?” asked Magnus again and Raphael just rubbed the back of his neck and in the end he shook his head.

“I don’t understand,” said Raphael because he did notice that Magnus was acting kind of weird - he was spacing out and he had a hard time on focusing on their conversation. He kept drifting off into his own little world and it made Raphael wonder just what in the world had happened on that trip. He knew that Alec went there as well so maybe they had a fight? Then again, Camille was there too and if there was anyone that could make Magnus feel like this, it was her. But still, Raphael thought that he was finally over her, so maybe something happened between him and Alec after all. “Why would you be a clingy person?” asked Raphael and Magnus just shrugged and tried to play it off as nothing important, but the look in his eyes said it all. There was something more behind that question.

“Nothing, I just wondered,” said Magnus and then leaned back in his couch and bit his lip. Still, that didn’t really give him much to work with and he wanted to have an opinion from someone like Raphael, he wasn’t going to sugar coat things for him like Catarina and Ragnor usually did. “I mean did I ever make you feel uncomfortable?” asked Magnus and Raphael arched his brow again.  _ He didn’t understand at all.  _ “I mean, do I sometimes come on too strong? Do I have the tendency to smother people with my attention?” he asked and didn’t even care at that point how desperate her was to get any kind of confirmation that he was thinking too much into it and that it was all just Camille playing mind tricks on him again. He always thought that he was  _ too good _ to people, but maybe this was just him and it was honestly him driving others around him away? Like he did with-

“Okay, Magnus, this is clearly  _ nothing _ ,” said Raphael and Magnus just looked down. “Seriously, what has been up with you? Ever since you came back from that wedding, you’re acting all weird, I don’t like it,” said Raphael and Magnus bit his lip.  _ Was he being too clingy even now?  _ He puffed his cheeks because he realised that he was now just being too paranoid, but in the long run he wanted to make sure that he didn’t- “Did something happen between you and Alec? Did you two get into a fight?” asked Raphael carefully and Magnus quickly shook his head and looked down.  _ Okay, no, but there was something and Raphael had a feeling who was to blame for that.  _

“No, no nothing happened between Alexander and I,” said Magnus and then just swallowed back his worries.  _ He didn’t need a confirmation from other people, he was a grown up.  _ He could deal with his insecurities on his own, he should be able to learn how to trust himself and not let others have such a big impact on him. And usually it wouldn’t really bother him what was coming out of Camille’s mouth, but the more that he was thinking about it, the more he was sure that he actually butted too much into people’s lives. Maybe there was something behind it.  _ Then again maybe he was just being paranoid of being left behind.  _ Alec would never do something like that though, never. He was a good, good man, who loved him. But still, he was worried and there was nothing that he could do about it. He was just going to need to deal with his own feelings of fear and-

“Okay, what did the bitch say to you?” asked Raphael and Magnus looked up at his friend. “You don’t have to tell me more, I know that look - it has to do something with Camille,” said Raphael and eventually Magnus just nodded. “So, I was right,” grumbled the younger one and then bit his lip because he was pissed off that the witch still dared to hurt Magnus after  _ everything.  _ As if she didn’t cause too many problems as it was back in the day, now she was still there and clearly wanted to hurt Magnus more. She was really evil, it wasn’t just- “I swear to God, Magnus, you shouldn’t let her have an impact on you, you’re over her and you’re in a much better place now, come on,” said Raphael softly and Magnus nodded.

“I know, I know, I’m stupid,” said Magnus and Raphael shook his head.

“ _ No _ ,” said Raphael because he didn’t like hearing his friend put himself down like this in front of him. Magnus was amazing and he didn’t like seeing him like that. Sure, Raphael wasn’t very good with showing his emotions, but when it came to Magnus, he was never nothing short but of a best friend to him and he was always there to him.  _ Always.  _ “You are not stupid, Camille is the stupid one,” said Raphael and Magnus scoffed. Nope, he was the stupid one that he still allowed Camille to dictate his life. “She is just the most manipulative person I’ve ever met, so you shouldn’t… oh, come on, Magnus,” said Raphael and Magnus bit his lip. “So, she said that? That you’re too clingy?” asked Raphael and Magnus shook his head.

Magnus didn’t want to talk about it anymore because he knew what Raphael was going to tell him. He was going to tell him that it wasn’t true and that it was all Camille’s fault and it probably was, but still- “I don’t wanna talk about it anymore,” mumbled Magnus and Raphael crossed his arms on top of his chest.  _ He clearly needed to talk about it.  _ Maybe not with him, but with Alec? “Let’s, um, let’s focus on something else?” asked Magnus and Raphael didn’t reply to him. “Anything interesting happened while I was away?” asked Magnus and Raphael could clearly see right through him.  _ That was some poor attempt in trying to change the topic of the conversation and he wasn’t going to bite into it so easily.  _

“Okay, I may not know what the witch said to you exactly, but listen to what I say; I have no idea what that even means. You’ve never made me uncomfortable?” asked Raphael and Magnus slowly nodded. “I mean, there are times that I bitch about you always being up on my case, but that’s because I’m, um, I’m very stubborn in case you haven’t noticed and I always appreciate that about you - knowing that I can count on you, no matter what. You’re always there for  _ all _ of us, so whatever she said, forget it, it’s not true, okay?” asked Raphael and Magnus managed to crack a little smile.  _ He appreciated Raphael saying that a lot.  _ “She is evil, evil.”

“You’re right,” said Magnus and his smile widened just a little bit. It was good to know that he didn’t smother his friend with his attention, but what about his significant other? Maybe he needed to talk to Alec about it, but then again he didn’t want to show Alexander this side of him - desperate, fearful, weak. Yes, he thought of himself as weak and he didn’t want to show it to Alec because to him it was a weakness and he didn’t want Alec to ever see him like that; at his lowest. He had his moments, but after moving away from Camille, he hadn’t had one ever since, but now he felt like…  _ it was really so annoying.  _ Puffing his cheeks, Magnus just took in a deep breath and then rubbed the back of his neck. “Thank you for saying this,” said Magnus and Raphael waved it off.

“It’s nothing,” said Raphael and his smile widened. “Don’t let her ruin your happiness again, Magnus, this thing that you have with Alec is special and you shouldn’t let her ruin that,” said Raphael and Magnus glanced at him.  _ It wasn’t like for Raphael to get so serious and invested when it came to his love life, but then again, this was about his friend's happiness and Raphi was always involved then.  _

“Yeah, you’re right,” said Magnus again and then took in a deep breath, feeling a lot better even though there was still insecurity rooten deep within him, he felt a bit better and he just nodded. 

_ Right, he wasn’t going to let Camille ruin his happiness and break his heart. Again.  _

Easier said than done though.

* * *

Alec was in a terrible mood that day, again. And, yes, it was work related, he was so over it all and he just wanted to go back home and do absolutely nothing. And just as he got back home, there was a knock at the door and Alec slowly made his way there, though he wasn’t in the mood for any company. He didn’t know who it could be, he thought that Magnus was still at work because he did mention having a long day in his office as well, so he was pleasantly surprised when he saw Magnus by the door and he just smiled he couldn’t lie - he was overjoyed to see Magnus there and he just bit his lip. “You really are a sight for the sore eyes,” said Alec happily and Magnus giggled and then stepped closer to Alec, hoping that he wasn’t intruding.

Magnus was just done with work and because he decided to go see Alexander. They’ve talked to each other earlier that day and Alec really sounded in a terrible mood. Magnus wanted to be a good boyfriend, so he decided to pop up at Alec’s place just to check up on him to see how was doing. Alec didn’t really mention what was wrong, but he could hear it in his voice; something happened at work - again probably - and he just wanted to be there for Alec, to cheer him up.  _ To be a good boyfriend.  _ That wasn’t intruding, he at least hoped that and he happily smiled because he could tell that Alec was happy to see him.

“Alexander, hi,” said Magnus softly and then stepped closer to him even more and then looked around. “Sorry for coming unannounced,” he quickly added, hating that he felt that he was somehow intruding, but then he managed to tell to himself that it was just his paranoia talking; Alec was always happy to see him and Alec happily hummed and then leaned in and cupped Magnus’ face, kissing him softly and he just pressed their foreheads together. Pity that Magnus didn’t tell him that he was coming over, he would prepare them a little dinner date maybe. But then again he was too tired to even think and he just huffed. 

“Oh, don’t apologise, Magnus, I’m always happy to see you,” said Alec and then opened the door wider, letting Mangus in and the other just walked inside and then turned around.  _ Magnus also just wanted to be with Alec.  _ “Sorry for the mess that you can see,” said Alec and then showed around, Magnus chuckling. There wasn’t any mess, though the living room looked a little bit chaotic, but it was nothing that Magnus wasn’t used to. “Too tired to clean up, literally I just wanna lay down and cry,” said Alec and Magnus pouted.

“You sure it’s fine for me to be here?” asked Magnus, just trying to make sure and Alec arched a brow, cocking his head to the side.  _ He literally just told him that he was very happy to see him?  _ Truth be told, Magnus ws acting kind of distant since the two of them have returned from that business trip - was he weirded out about the bouquet thing? They were taking things slow and catching a bouquet might have added on a bit too pressure onto the whole relationship?

“Of course,” said Alec and chuckled. “You’re always welcome here,” said Alec, winking and he then took in a deep breath, stepping closer to Magnus and he took his hand into his own, guiding him down to the couch and he just plopped down, dragging Magnus with him, the other just giggling. “There, I feel lots better,” said Alec in the end and Magnus smiled and glanced up at Alec’s face, happily gazing into his eyes. He was happy to hear that Alec was doing much better now that he was with; that meant that he didn’t bother him, right? Smiling, Magnus just placed his head on top of Alec’s shoulder and then closed his eyes.

“Wanna talk about it?” asked Magnus because he knew that talking about things usually helped and Alec just glanced down at him and he just shook his head. Yes, he knew that he should probably talk about it, but he didn’t want. He was really unhappy lately thanks to his work and he knew that he should probably address it more, but he just didn’t want to spend the precious time that he had with Magnus talking and worrying about work because that was all that he could do lately and he just huffed under his breath. But he should probably really start thinking about it more seriously because he was really  _ really _ unhappy with how things were going in his workplace and he just groaned in the end. Magnus flinched and then glanced up again.  _ He said too much.  _

“Nah,” said Alec and then waved it off. “I just really don’t want to spend the time I have with you on talking about what an idiot my boss is because I think we’ve got it covered,” said Alec, trying to laugh it off, but it didn’t really work and he just sighed. “I don’t know, let’s just, let’s talk about something else,” said Alec and Magnus glanced down and then just nodded. 

“Okay,” said Magnus and then just puffed his cheeks. “But just so you know - I’m here if you ever wanna talk about it,” said Magnus, trying to make sure that Alec knew that and the other just nodded and placed a kiss upon his cheek and Magnus smiled a little bit, but still hoped that he could do something more to make Alec feel better. Alec, on the other hand, was just curious about why Magnus appeared distant and Magnus was always trying so much to cheer him up, so maybe he should try to cheer Magnus up for a change? Maybe Magnus wanted to talk about what was bothering him? Alec just hoped that it really wasn’t the bouquet thing.

“How about you, Magnus, how are you?” asked Alec and Magnus gave him a surprised look, glancing up at him and he just shrugged.

“I’m okay,” said Magnus and then cocked his head to the side a little bit - did he say something that made Alec think that he wasn’t? “Why do you ask, angel?” asked Magnus carefully and Alec just shrugged.

“Look, I know it’s gonna sound stupid, but,” said Alec. “You’ve been kind of distant ever since we came back from that wedding?” asked Alec and Magnus quickly glanced down and took in a deep breath.  _ It really showed then, huh?  _ Magnus didn’t want Alec to think that there was anything wrong, he didn’t want to think that he was being distant, but Magnus knew that he had that detency that when things got tough, he started shutting down and distancing himself from people. He just didn’t want the others to worry about him because in his mind, somehow, he wasn’t- “Did something happen, or?”

“No, I’m fine, Alexander,” said Magnus after a little pause and it was that pause and the little hesitation behind his voice that made Alec think that there really was something wrong. 

“It’s the bouquet thing, isn’t it?” asked Alec and Magnus glanced at him, surprised and very much confused because he didn’t get what Alec was talking about.  _ He was very, very confused.  _

“The what?”

“You know, you caught the bouquet at the wedding and ever since you’re acting kind of strange,” said Alec and Magnus just shook his head. Of course it wasn’t that, he was very much excited about the bouquet. He didn’t want to get  _ too _ excited about it, because it would be jinxing himself as per usual. “I know that we’ve said that we’re taking things slow and I thought that that maybe kind of freaked you out? And I was all  _ oh, this is such a good sing _ and all of that,” said Alec and then rubbed the back of his head. “I just… worried that I maybe freaked you out?” asked Alec and Magnus chuckled and then shook his head.

“Of course not,” said Magnus.

“You sure? Because I was joking of course,” said Alec and then hummed. “I mean it’s not like I don’t wanna marry you sometime, I just… I mean it’s not a bad sign,” he said and then he stopped talking and he took in a deep breath. “Okay, like… I’m just making this worse. I just...”

“Alexander, I promise that it’s completely fine,” said Magnus, laughing softly. “It’s nothing, I promise, I’m fine,” said Magnus and he didn’t like saying that because he felt like he was lying to Alexander. In a way he was and he just pressed his lips together.  _ Fake it till you make it, fake it till you make it.  _ Magnus was completely fine. Alec gently cupped his chin and he lifted it up, leaning down and he kissed him ever so softly, making Magnus’ guilt worsen and he cleared his throat. 

“Okay,” said Alec in the end. Maybe Magnus just needed a little bit vacation, he still didn’t take one like he claimed that he was going to. Magnus had a reason for that - he didn’t want to over think it so he decided to keep on working. But a good vacation was something that he needed and he just huffed under his breath. “If you’re okay then that’s all that matters to me, everything is just fine,” said Alec and Magnus sheepishly smiled. “I just,” he said and made a little pause. “I care about you a lot,” he said and Magnus’ smile continued growing as Alec’s thumb was gently caressing his cheek and he just pressed his lips together.  _ They were taking things slowly, but-  _ “I love you,” said Alec in the end. His heart was hammering against his ribcage, but he was just so happy that he finally got around to saying it. He didn’t care if-

“I love you too,” said Magnus quickly and then made a little pause and he then huffed under his breath and glanced down again, feeling kind of shy again. Magnus wanted to add onto that so much more, he wanted to tell Alec just how much he loved him, what he loved about him, but at the time it didn’t feel like he could say anything more because it was just… perfect. Truly, it was just so perfect and he just melted against Alec as the other went in for another kiss. 

Alec was beyond happy at the moment and for the time Magnus managed to stop his worries because, fuck,  _ Alexander loved him.  _ He felt like he was walking on air and as Alec pulled back, Magnus went in for another kiss because he just couldn’t get enough of Alexander. It was impossible. 


	18. Chapter 18

‘’Theo, I need help,’’ whined Alec and his secretary looked at him curiously, arching his brow, but he then nodded. Alec took in a deep breath and then he rubbed his palms together and cleared his throat. ‘’I’m thinking about something and I need your opinion on it,’’ said Alec and Underhill nodded again. ‘’Okay, so here’s the deal - I am really unhappy here,’’ said Alec, whispering even though they were in his office behind the closed door. Still, he didn’t know if Imogen could be there close - she was like a spy sometimes.  _ Scary one. The most scary one that he could think of.  _ Ugh. Underhill nodded, waiting for Alec to say something because he could tell that his friend was taking a little bit before he said what was on his mind, but it had to be quite serious since he had called him into his office, saying that it was an urgent matter and it was. At least to Alec because he needed an opinion pronto and he really didn’t want to bother Magnus, because he could tell that he had a lot on his plate as it was even though he didn’t know what was really bothering him. 

‘’Sure, okay, shoot,’’ said Underhill and Alec gave him a little smile. 

‘’Okay, so I’ve been thinking, I,’’ he said and then shook his head. ‘’I really can’t continue working here, I mean I’m more and more miserable as days are passing by and I’m just,’’ he said and rolled his eyes. ‘’Is it just me or is Imogen getting more and more out of control?’’ he asked and Underhill shook his head; it wasn’t just Alec, she truly was getting more and more horrible and he was also miserable working there. But it didn’t get as bad as for Alec though. Then again, Alec was working above him, so his responsibilities were a lot bigger and Imogen was probably even more insufferable towards him. 

‘’Oh, it’s not just you, boss, she’s been horrible towards all of us,’’ said Underhill and shook his head. ‘’I think she has some personal problems going on,’’ said Underhill and Alec just sighed sadly and bit his lip. Perhaps, but she shouldn’t taking it out on them. ‘’So, what have you been thinking?’’ asked Underhill, though he had a hunch what it was because he had been also thinking of leaving, but wasn’t really sure about it, but if Alec was quitting then so was he. There was no way that he was going to return working there if Alec wasn’t there, he was literally the only person that he got along with in there and Alec sighed under his breath and then clicked with his tongue.

‘’I was thinking about quitting,’’ said Alec and then shrugged. ‘’I mean there’s tons of other companies that I can look into,’’ said Alec and then made another pause and rubbed the back of his neck. ‘’I mean I don’t know, what do you think? I mean then again searching a job is hard and it’s just so annoying to go to the interviews, but in the long run it could be super beneficial. I doubt that I could ever find another boss that is as horrible as Imogen,’’ commented Alec and Underhill snorted and then he nodded and crossed his legs and then decided to speak up as well because he needed to get it off of his chest to tell his friend how he truly felt about it all.

‘’Oh, thank goodness, it’s not just me,’’ said Underhill and Alec arched a brow. ‘’It’s been on my mind recently too,’’ said Underhill and Alec chuckled.  _ Oh, that made him feel so much better.  _ And maybe both of them could apply for a job at the same company, though it would be kind of hard to get a job at the same place, but still they could try. ‘’I’ve talked about it with Marcel and he’s very much supportive of the idea,’’ said Underhill and laughed softly. ‘’In fact, he’s the one that has been trying to make me see how much it would benefit me, but I wasn’t sure until now, but maybe it’s a sign if both of us want to get the hell away from this place,’’ said Underhill and Alec chuckled and then bit his lip.  _ Oh, he talked about it with Marcel?  _ Ah, then again the two of them have been together for a long time and were even living together. Still, maybe he should mention something about it to Magnus?

‘’Yeah,’’ said Alec and smiled a little bit. ‘’Maybe we should seriously consider it?’’ asked Alec and Underhill shrugged.

‘’Yeah, I am, I have even written a new resume,’’ said Underhill and Alec’s eyes widened a little bit because he didn’t get to that part yet, but maybe he should have get to writing. Humming, Alec leaned back in his chair and then he nodded. ‘’I mean what does Magnus say? I’m sure he’s also supportive about it?’’ asked Underhill and Alec glanced down and Underhill arched his brow because Alec’s silence told him that Magnus either didn’t know about it yet, or that he didn’t support the idea. But given what he knew about Magnus, it was probably the first one. ‘’You haven’t told him?’’ asked Underhill and Alec shrugged, but eventually he just nodded. 

‘’No,’’ said. ‘’But, look, he has a lot on his plate as it is,’’ he said and then made another pause. ‘’He wouldn’t say what it is and he says that he’s okay, but I noticed that something’s changed, ever since we’ve came from that trip, it’s been different,’’ said Alec and Underhill arched a brow. ‘’I don’t know how to explain it even, but I can feel it and he just says that everything’s okay,’’ said Alec and pouted a little bit and Underhill crossed his arms on top of his chest and Alec arched a brow. ‘’Yes?’’ he asked because he could tell that Underhill had something to say about it.

‘’You two really need to learn how to talk about things,’’ said Underhill with a little smile.

‘’I know I know,’’ said Alec. ‘’I feel guilty for not telling about what’s been on my mind because he’s also been asking me, but like I said, I don’t want to burden him,’’ said Alec and Underhill just shook his head. Now what?

‘’Alec it’s not bothering someone,’’ said Underhill softly. ‘’Look, relationships can’t work without proper communication, every healthy relationship needs a healthy dose of communication,’’ said Underhill and Alec nodded because he already knew that, but all of the previous boyfriends that he had hated that about him - that he wanted to  _ talk  _ about things, so he didn’t want to complicated things too much. ‘’There’s ups and downs in every relationship,’’ said Underhill and Alec nodded, biting into his lip. ‘’But it’s what brings you closer in the end and make your bond even stronger. Trust me, I know,’’ said Underhill. ‘’Marcel and I have been through a lot,’’ said Underhill.

‘’Relationships take effort,’’ said Alec and Underhill nodded.

‘’Exactly,’’ said Underhill and smiled softly. ‘’So just sit down and talk. It is that simple, you’d be surprised,’’ said Underhill and winked. Alec nodded and then huffed under his breath. Yes, yes it was, but he tried talking to Magnus about it and he always somehow dodged his questions or made him believe that everything was okay, but Alec deep down knew that something was up with Magnus and he just- Ugh. He really didn’t want to get into his personal space, but he wanted to help him out somehow and he huffed under his breath and then he nodded.

‘’Yeah,’’ said Alec. ‘’I think that’s for the best, I’ll try talking to him about it,’’ said Alec and Underhill gave him a little smile. ‘’Thanky, you really do know what to say in moments like this,’’ said Alec and Underhill grinned. ‘’You’re like my wise older friend,’’ said Alec and Underhill’s smile dropped.

‘’Drop the older, Alec,’’ said Underhill deadly serious and Alec just started laughing and Underhill just rolled his eyes. But he did hope that everything was going to work out between him and Magnus! It wasn’t that difficult. 

Just. Talk.

That was all.

* * *

Magnus was in his office, trying to keep himself busy as much as it was possible, but the harder that he tried to force himself to actually be productive, the worse his mood was getting. Not only did he managed to get absolutely  _ nothing  _ done that day, but he also felt like shit about it. He was guilty and he was thinking too much. Also he was in a very bad mood, he was snapping at anyone that was trying to see how he was doing. He was doing  _ fine _ why was everyone asking him so much about it?! It was annoying and Magnus grumbled under his breath and in the end he just leaned back and bit his lip. He was angry because he knew that he should be happy but he wasn't. Technically he knew that it was Camille's fault, but he did what he usually did when he was in a bad mood - blame himself.

_ Alexander had told him that he loved him.  _ He said those three words that Magnus had been wishing to hear from Alec and he got the chance to say them back. He should be happy because everything was going great. Alec was there for him, he was in a relationship with an amazing guy that loved him beyond belief, yet he was unhappy. Why? Well. There was the doubt that Camille managed to successfully plant into him. And also there was a feeling that Alec wasn't telling him something. He could tell that Alec was hiding something away from him and it was driving him crazy.

But then again who was he to blame Alec for holding things back? Magnus wasn't any better with his own doubts and worries because he could tell that Alec sensed that there was something wrong with him as well yet he decided to lie about it. But he just didn't want Alec to… Magnus took in a deep breath and chewed on his lip.  _ Maybe Alec didn't feel comfortable enough with sharing what was on his mind?  _ No, that was very stupid though because Alec wasn't like that. Alec told him himself that he was the most comfortable when he was with him.  _ But that was weeks ago and maybe Alec realised that Magnus pried too much? _ Magnus whined and leaned back in his chair, feeling sorry for himself.

"I really do need that vacation," said Magnus to himself, massaging his temples and he then took out his phone and read through the texts that he had in the group chat with his friends.  _ Just talk to him,  _ they said. But it was so much easier to be said than done. If only he wasn't so stubborn, he wished that it was easier, but it wasn't. Biting into his lip, Magnus checked onto his texts with Alec and he rubbed the back of his neck. "Awfully quiet today," said Magnus and hummed.

_ Don't overthink it. Don't overthink it! _

_ Too late. _

"Nah, he's probably just busy, Imogen has been up on his case that's all," said Magnus and clasped his hands together. But he has been a bit distant for a few days now. But was he really or was that just Magnus looking too much into it? Magnus was miserable and he just locked his phone and grumbled under his breath. Well, at least they were going to see each other - finally - that day. They had dinner date plans and it was the only thing that Magnus was looking forward to that day. Everything else sucked. Also, maybe he could finally ask Alec about why he has been in such a bad mood lately. That was the plan. He was going to show up, right?

Magnus bit into his lip. He didn't want to be clingy and ask too many questions, but in the end he decided to send one short text to Alec - just to be sure! Then, and only then was he going to feel a bit better. Smiling, Magnus went ahead and sent Alec the text.

**Magnus:** Just checking, we're still on for that dinner date, right? ;-)

And thankfully Magnus didn't have to wait long to get Alec's reply that time, his heart beating fast when his phone buzzed and he quickly checked up on Alec's text.

**Alec:** For sure we are! 

**Alec:** Is it okay if I'll wanna talk about something more serious after the dinner? I don't wanna bother you too much, but I'm dealing with some things and I wanna make a change in my life and I'll just need your opinion?

Magnus smiled and bit his lip - well, duh! Of course he was always going to be there for Alexander! Whatever he would be struggling with, Magnus was always going to he there with and for him!

**Magnus:** Angel, of course. You know I'll always be there for you. No questions asked <3

**Alec:** Thank you so much.

**Alec:** I mean it. 

**Magnus:** No need to thank me, Alexander ;-)

**Alec:** I love you :)

Magnus bit his lip - his heart still fluttered when Alec said the words. It's always been him first so far, but Magnus was working his way up to say it first to Alec. Not just  _ I love you too, _ but just  _ I love you.  _ It meant a lot to Magnus and his smile widened.

**Magnus:** I love you too <3

* * *

Alec decided that Underhill was right - he really needed to tell Magnus what was bothering him for the last couple of weeks. He kind of felt that he was being distant and he didn't like it. So he decided to be an adult and for a change deal with his problems head on and after the lovely dinner that they had at Magnus' - Magnus prepared them a lovely meal - Alec decided to finally talk to Magnus about his plans. He didn't tell about them to anyone but Camille. Izzy and Jace would probably end up telling their parents and Robert would then try to make amends with Imogen and it would just turn out into this big mess which was the last thing that Alec wanted to happen. He didn't want to make too big of a deal about it.

"Cocktail?" asked Magnus because he noticed that Alec was kind if tensed up and that was probably a sign that he was getting into the mood of telling him about whatever was on his mind and Magnus just took in a deep breath. Alec shook his head because he really wasn't in the mood to be drinking.

"No, I'm good," said Alec and sat down onto the couch. Magnus then nodded and then sat down next to Alec, taking in a deep breath and he gave him a little smile of encouragement. "Look, there's been something that has been on my mind, it's been bothering and I think it's time for me to finally address it and do something about it." 

Magnus nodded and then felt his heart hammering a little bit. This was making him nervous and he didn't even know why. He knew that whatever was bothering Alec it wasn't about him… Right? "Yeah, I've noticed," said Magnus and smiled softly, taking Alec's hand into his and scooted a bit closer. "I didn't want to say anything, but you seemed kind of distant lately. What's up?" asked Magnus and Alec's heart fell to the pit of his stomach.

"I've been distant, huh?" asked Alec and sighed sadly. "Crap. I'm so sorry Magnus if you felt like I've been pushing you away. It's bad habit I tend to do when things get tough on me," said Alec and pressed his lips together. "Am not too proud of it, trying to change that," said Alec softly and Magnus smiled, waving it off.  _ He understood all too well how that felt.  _ Right, this was about Alec - not himself!

"Alexander, it's okay," said Magnus and Alec gave him a soft smile. Magnus was always so understanding and he loved that about him. "We all need a little bit of space when we're trying to figure things out," said Magnus and Alec nodded. That was very true and he then took in a deep breath.

"Lately I've began to notice that I'm really unhappy with how things are at work," said Alec and Magnus nodded. "I mean it's really bad, I've never felt this way of burden on me. Imogen has been just like pushing and pushing me towards the tipping point," said Alec. "And I don't think I can carry on like this anymore. It's too much, just the sheer thought of going to work makes me wanna crawl into a cave and not ever come back from it. I'm tired of being disrespected and I don't think it's healthy for me," said Alec and Magnus sighed sadly and linked their fingers together.

"You poor thing," said Magnus sofly. "Look I don't wanna tell you what to do but maybe you should consider-"

"Quitting. Yes," said Alec quickly. "Had my mind set on it for a long time. Always been too scared to do it though. I mean I have a nice thing going on here - looking from economic point of view," explained Alec. "And starting over it's… A lot. But I think it's for the best?" asked Alec and Magnus huffed under his breath and quickly nodded. 

"You're miserable there. They don't appreciate you and you totally deserve something better,’’ said Magnus. ‘’Somewhere where you won’t be taken for granted,’’ said Magnus and Alec gave him a little smile, nodding. Yes, all that he needed to do was to find a place like that and he sighed and he then nodded. Oh, but he felt so much better now that he finally got to tell Magnus what had been going on and he then clasped his hands together and bit his lip. 

‘’Good, now I feel so much better,’’ said Alec and then chuckled softly. ‘’I just really needed to get it out, I knew that you’d support me no matter what, it wasn’t about that, but it was about me being too afraid to actually admit it to myself and I don’t know,’’ said Alec and rubbed the back of his neck and he then just chuckled. ‘’I just… thank you so much,’’ said Alec and Magnus cocked his head to the side - but he really didn’t do all that much, at least not then and he just scooted a bit closer to Alec and cupped his face.

‘’Alexander, you don’t need to thank me, I didn’t really do much, I mean-’’

‘’But you did,’’ said Alec and Magnus cocked his head to the side. ‘’You  _ listened _ and that means so much to me,’’ said Alec and Magnus still wasn’t completely sure what Alec was on about. They were in a relationship, of course he was going to be there always to listen. ‘’It’s just… I’m projecting too much from my exes,’’ said Alec and then laughed. ‘’I just learned that I should always deal with my crap on my own and not burden other people,’’ he said. ‘’I’m trying to unlearn myself that and trying to share more,’’ he said. ‘’So from now on, I won’t shut you out like this anymore,’’ he said and Magnus just smiled.

‘’Alexander, you really didn’t shut me out, I mean-’’

‘’No, I did,’’ said Alec. ‘’I didn’t always reply immediately to your texts, it took me longer than usually and-’’

‘’Alec, it’s okay,’’ laughed Magnus. If that was what shutting him out meant to Alec then… it was so adorable, but in way he was glad because- Magnus bit his lip and then leaned up, pressing their lips together, his hand travelling down Alec’s neck and the other happily hummed into their kiss as he scooted closer a bit more as they kissed again. Magnus was the one that pulled back from the kiss and he just looked into Alec’s eyes.  _ He was so proud of him that he was so brave, he took the courage to finally change his life and make a proper change in it.  _ It was all going to be for the better. ‘’I’m so proud of you,’’ said Magnus softly and he wished that he was also so brave - that he would be brave to deal with his own demons, but not yet. He didn’t feel ready yet. 

_ Also turning this about him felt almost selfish to him. This moment was about Alexander.  _

‘’But I didn’t really do much yet, it’s just-’’

‘’You did the most important step of them all,’’ said Magnus. ‘’You set yourself to do something and that is very brave,’’ said Magnus, Alec thinking that Magnus was praising him too much. Chuckling, Alec kissed Magnus’ forehead and then shook his head. ‘’I wish I could do it as well,’’ said Magnus.

‘’Hmm?’’ asked Alec but before he could get a reply, Magnus kissed him again and then gave him a big hug. Alec wanted to ask him more about what that meant, but then decided not to and just hugged Magnus tighter to himself, pressing a kiss upon his cheek and he hoped that Magnus would also feel safe enough to open up a bit more one day, but until then Alec was going to patiently wait and be right there for him. 


	19. Chapter 19

Alec was home, in his apartment and was trying to finally get to writing that resignation letter that he couldn’t wait to finally hand in on Monday. It was Saturday, so the plan was having it get done by then, but it was kind of hard. Not because Alec was bad at writing, no, no, the fact was that he still needed to be  _ professional  _ with writing it and that was the bit that he was struggling with, rubbing the back of his neck and he then took in a deep breath.  _ Okay, yes, he needed to be short and get to the point right away.  _ He didn’t need to tell Imogen his real reasons for resigning, though he really… really wanted to. Like it was on his mind for such a long time and he had the whole speech planned, but he knew that he needed to be the bigger person and just step down. Yep, he was going to be nice about it - as much as he possibly could, cracking his knuckles and his eyes travelled back on the screen to see what he got written so far and he just let out a very annoyed groan. All that was written on the screen so far was:

_ Dear Mrs. Herondale, _

_ I would like to inform you that… _

“Oh for fuck’s sake,” said Alec and then bit his lip and went back to thinking, trying his best to say nice words. Right, nice, nice words. “Okay let’s do this,” said Alec and then continued typing out the letter of resignation. “I would like to inform you that I would like to hand in my letter of resignation,” said Alec as he was typing it out at the same time and he then nodded, taking in a deep breath and then went back to thinking because he couldn’t find any other words that he would like to add on to that. Of course there were still things that needed to be said -  _ from a professional point of view, he needed to thank Imogen of all people for such an amazing opportunity. Yeah _ , right, what kind of an opportunity was it anyway? He was there to be her personal slave. That was all there was to it. 

How about if he started with typing it what he truly wanted to say to Imogen and get a few things off of his chest? Maybe then writing the whole letter was going to be much easier for him. That didn’t sound like such a bad idea and he then opened up a new document and started typing again, his eyes lit up almost immediately as he took in a deep breath and started typing again, this time not being professional at all because this was going to be just for him, nobody else was going to see it.  _ Well, maybe he was going to email it over to his friend!  _ Alec was laughing under his breath as he was typing, feeling better already because he truly needed that. 

It took Alec about five minutes to type out the letter and in the end he felt a lot lighter, skimming the letter a few times and he was laughing under his breath. Oh, yeah, that was it. He was kind of tempted to just send it like that, but of course not. Not only because he was an adult and he knew better, but because he wanted to work in the city again. Imogen Herondale and her company were very known in New York. So the word could get out if he wrote a letter like that and send it to her, but still he was quite happy with what he wrote out and he read it quite a few times.

_ Dear Mrs Herondale, _

_ I, Alexander Gideon Lightwood, have finally reached my tipping point. I’ve tried and tried, slaved off in my office for years for you and this it how you repay me? By turning me into your own personal slave, think that I will always do as you tell me and not feel like shit about? You not only took all fun out of my work place - which I was really excited about years and years ago - but you also managed to completely ruin me as a person. This company is shit and you know it, all of your employees - discluding myself and Mr Underhill from the - are shit and they don’t know even the basic things. That is why all of the responsibilities always fall on me and you take me for granted.  _

_ The salary is good - like don’t get me wrong? You paid me good, so from economic point of view, I’ll be doing much worse, but you know what? I am very happy about that because money doesn’t buy happiness. So, yes, this is my letter of resignation, I don’t work for you anymore and I can finally tell you what I really think of you: you’re a terrible boss, you over-work your employees and you treat us like shit.  _

_ Goodbye and I wish you lot of luck with your company. Without me, you’ll be needing and you know it. _

_ Not so sincerely and definitely NOT yours, _

_ Alec Lightwood.  _

“Ah, yep, feels so much better,” said Alec and then grinned all the way up to his ears. Now that was so much easier to write because he didn’t feel like he was lying, it was a good draft for the actual letter that he was about to write, biting into his lip and he then just decided to wait a bit longer because he felt fulfilled and he really didn’t want to go back kissing up to Imogen’s ass. He read through the letter again and found himself laughing, deciding to send it over to Underhill. They could both get a little laugh out of it and he happily laid back against the couch and took a screenshot of the letter and sent it over to Underhill via his text messages.

**Alec:** There, I finally have my resignation letter all written up, all that’s left it to hand it in on Monday. What do you think, Theo, did I cover the most important parts of my reasons for resigning from the position? I think that I went in enough details? What do you as my secretary think? Will it do the job?

And to the text he added the picture of the letter and he was eagerly waiting for a reply, which he promptly got and he started laughing when he read Underhill’s reply, biting into his lip and he was just shaking his head. Yep, both of them were very eager to get the hell away from that place. It was worse than hell.

**Underhill:** Hahahaha.

**Underhill:** Oh, I think you’ve covered all the important parts, I like especially the thing where you call her company a shit one and the ending, you nailed it, lol. Okay, but imagine handing this in for real? Like she would lose it completely and I wanna be there to witness it. I mean I’d pay to see her face.

Alec chuckled and then nodded. Yep, he wasn’t the only one. He quickly hit the reply button and started typing away.

**Alec:** Do you even how hard is it not to give into the temptation? I really wanna mail this to her, but I have to be an adult or whatever. Being an adult sucks, you know? I have to be mature. Ugh, I hate that word so much. Now typing out the real thing sucks, I can’t even begin to start it. I have to be professional and all that crap, it sucks -_-

**Underhill:** Oh, trust me, I know the pain all too well. It took me a shit ton of time as well mainly because of the same thing. I so wanna tell her how I really feel but at the same time I want to get a job in the future and given by what kind of a person she is, she’d probably tell the entire city.

**Alec:** Oh, yeah.

**Alec:** I wonder how she’ll manage to run the company without us, muahahaha!

**Underhill:** I’d love to see her try, she is going down like for real. I mean the company is filled with incompetent people. How in the world do they get the positions? Some of them don’t even know how to use the basic programs on the computer, I mean seriously, how in the world?!

Alec snorted and at first he also didn’t know how they managed to get employed, but now he knew -  _ desperation on Imogen’s part.  _ There weren’t many new faces that came into the company ever since Alec got employed there - the whole company got the bad name because of her and people just didn’t want to apply there. Therefore she was stuck with the few incompetent people and Alec was just laughing because when they were leaving it was all going to be sinking. 

**Alec:** Honestly I think it’s because she just doesn’t have anyone to employ. People hear about her and run away. She is like a vulture, my man! She eats your soul alive, all of it. And that is why the company is at the state that it is in. 

**Alec:** And I don’t even feel bad about leaving the whole place to go to hell. 

**Underhill:** Same, boss, same!

Alec smiled and he was about to reply back to Underhill, but then his phone buzzed and he saw that he had a new text from Magnus and he immediately sat up and his smile even widened and he glanced over at the clock. It was just a bit after noon, the day was still young, so maybe they could meet up and go out a little bit. Alec was more than happy and eager to get the hell out of the apartment. It was sunny and he wanted to spend the day outside, which was really unlike him. But that was because he was a changed man - he was making big changes in his life and he was starting it with quitting, but he was going so much further than that and he quickly read Magnus’ text.

**Magnus:** Hi, Alexander <3 Just checking in to see how you’re doing on this sunny Saturday. What are you up to? <3 I hope I’m not interrupting or anything like this, but I was just wondering if you’d wanna hang out? 

Alec’s smile faltered a little bit because there was something again about that text that made him feel uneasy. Magnus was always… asking if it was okay for them to hang out, if he wasn’t being too pushy about things. It was just piling more and more and before Alec didn’t really think of it too much, but now it came even in the text format and he bit his lip. That probably had something to do with the fact that Magnus had been trying to tell him something and Alec really didn’t want to push too much, but maybe it was finally the time for him to ask him properly. Alec didn’t like seeing Magnus sad. Still, he replied to Magnus quickly!

**Alec:** Magnus! <3 <3 <3 <3 

**Alec:** Oh, I’m not really doing much, I’m just trying to write the resignation letter and am chatting with Theo, that’s all. I was about to ask you the same, I miss you, let’s do something fun today, hmm? <3 Whatever you wish for, I’m ready, get me the hell away from my apartment, it’s lonely and somehow it pisses me off. 

* * *

“I’m not interrupting, right?” asked Magnus, biting on his nail and Catarina arched her brow and leaned next to her friend to see what he was talking about and as she read the texts between him and Alec, she really didn’t understand what Magnus was talking about. “He said he’s chatting with his friend, so maybe I should give them some space? He’s also working on that resignation letter and-”

“He literally told you that he wants to hang out, like he’s excited about it,” said Catarina softly and then crossed her arms on top of her chest because she could tell that Magnus was still bothered by the whole thing and she grumbled under her breath. “Don’t tell me that what Camille said to you at the wedding is still bothering you? Because we’ve all told you that it’s not true, nothing of that is true,” said Catarina and Magnus just nodded, but his eyes were still focused on his phone and she sighed sadly. “That’s it, I’ll go pay her a visit and I will-” started Catarina, talking about Camille because there was a lot of things that she wanted to tell her.  _ Oh, so, so many.  _

“What? No, no,” said Magnus quickly. “It has nothing to do with that,” said Magnus, biting on his lip and Catarina arched her brow as she read Magnus’ reply to Alec that he still didn’t send it, but he was getting ready to send it and Catarina didn’t believe him even for a second. Oh, that bitch of Camille completely destroyed Magnus’ happiness and she wasn’t going to stand for it.

“Then what is this all about -  _ You sure? I mean if you’re busy with writing the letter and hanging out with your friend, we can meet up some other time? _ ” asked Catarina and Magnus just looked down, his heart dropped and Catarina shook her head. “Nope, you won’t send this, I mean it, I’m not letting you do this, give me your phone,” said Catarina and Magnus shook his head - what did she have in mind?

“Do what?”

“Just give me your phone, you’ll see,” said Catarina and then she took the phone away from Magnus’ hands and deleted what he had written. Instead of that, she wrote:  _ Amazing, I’m looking forward to it, I’m picking you up in an hour and we can go have all the fun that we can have <3  _ Before Magnus could say something, the text was sent and Magnus’ jaw dropped. But what if she was wrong? Magnus quickly took his phone back and just in that moment, Magnus’ phone buzzed. Alec had already replied back to him and Magnus read the reply.

**Alec:** Yay, I’ll start getting ready then, I wanna good look for my man ;-)

Magnus smiled a little bit and sent Alec a short reply because he also needed to get going then! He looked like shit!

**Magnus:** Alexander, you always looks lovely. Can’t wait to see you, be soon there then <3

**Alec:** <3 <3 <3

“He’s adorable,” commented Magnus and Catarina chuckled.

“And happy to see you, see? I was right,” said Catarina and Magnus chuckled, biting into his lip. Yeah, she was, everyone was telling him how he was just worrying about nothing, which was true. He knew all of that and yet- “Nope, no more of that, you’re over-thinking it again,” said Catarina and Magnus nodded and gave her a little smile. He was happy that she was there with him.

“You’re right,” said Magnus and then his eyes widened. “Fuck, I have nothing to wear,” said Magnus and was catapulted onto his legs. “Okay, yes, I can make it, I can find something in what… ten minutes? Ugh, okay, I got this,” said Magnus and Catarina chuckled and gave him a little smile.

“Of course you do - you’re Magnus Bane after all,” said Catarina and winked.

“Good point,” said Magnus and winked. 

Catarina smiled - it was good to see Magnus smile like that, but she wished that Magnus would face what was bothering him instead of running away from it because she could see it; all of them could. Magnus wasn’t doing exactly okay and maybe talking to Alec about it would help. 

* * *

Alec had a lot of fun hanging out with Magnus. They went out for a lunch, then they hit the cinema and watched a corny romantic comedy that Alec secretly liked, but he wasn’t going to admit it out loud and then they walked around the city for a little bit until Alec invited Magnus over to his place so that they could spend some more time together alone. Alec had a lot of fun indeed, but he wasn’t sure that  _ Magnus _ had a good time hanging out with him and he was kind of confused about it all. Magnus was the one that asked him out that day, but he was spacing out for the whole day and it just… made Alec wonder. Maybe he did something wrong after all? He couldn’t figure it out and he wished Magnus would tell him about what was bothering him.

Still, he didn’t want to push it too much, so he just decided to take it slow. Magnus was sitting on the couch, again spacing out and Alec sat down next to him. Magnus was indeed spacing out for the whole day and he hated himself for it. It was getting worse, he could feel it that Alec wasn’t very amused about him not paying attention to what was going around them and he didn’t mean to upset him, but at the same time- “Did you like the movie?” asked Alec suddenly and Magnus snapped back to reality. 

“Um, yes, it was cool and, um, funny,” said Magnus, but didn’t really know what was going on in the movie because he was just thinking and thinking and… couldn’t turn off his brain, it was so irritating. “Did you like it, Alexander?” asked Magnus and softly smiled. Alec bit his lip and in the end he nodded.

“Yes, I enjoyed it even if it was kind of cheesy, just don’t tell Jace,” said Alec, winking and Magnus snorted, but his smile faded away and Alec pouted a little bit. “You had fun today, right?” asked Alec in the end because it was really bothering him. He didn’t want Magnus  _ not _ enjoy their date, it would be a disaster.

Magnus immediately looked up at him and he bit his lip.  _ He ruined things again, he again ruined things.  _ “Of course I had,” said Magnus and quickly cupped Alec’s face and he gently scooted closer to him. “It’s always fun when we’re together,” said Magnus and Alec nodded, glancing down and he then clasped his hands together, leaning into the warmth of Magnus’ palm and Magnus glanced down. 

“You sure?” asked Alec because that wasn’t a happy face Magnus was wearing at the moment and he just bit his lip. “You were kind of spacing out for the entire time, you sure you’re okay?” asked Alec and Magnus’ heart dropped for the second time in a row and he didn’t say anything that time. He didn’t deny it. Alec bit his lip and then cocked his head to the side a little bit and he thought about what to do. He couldn’t walk away from it, not this time. “What’s going on, Magnus, you can tell me,” said Alec softly and Magnus shrugged. “Didn’t we agree that relationships take effort?” asked Alec and chuckled, Magnus nodding and he then took in a deep breath and slowly glanced back up at Alec, who was just smiling and waiting for him to say something.

Magnus’ hands were shaking and when he thought about it… it was just so stupid. He was making such a big deal out of it and it was nothing. Alexander was worried about him, because he was worrying about useless things. “It’s stupid,” said Magnus in the end and just shook his head. Alec shook his head and then lifted his face up by gently holding his chin and he pressed a kiss upon Magnus’ forehead.

“It’s not stupid, your feelings are always valid and you should be able to feel whatever way you feel, so don’t...” said Alec and Magnus’ heart melted. Alec was so kind and understanding, he didn’t understand why he was this nervous about it.  _ And about what?! _

“It’s really stupid, though, like,” said Magnus, his hands shaking still and he cursed his breath.  _ He didn’t like himself like that.  _ Not under control, insecurities sky-rocketing. “You know how Camille said all that crap about me at the reception?” asked Magnus and Alec slowly nodded. Yes, he remembered, but what did it have to do with anything? “I,” he said. “I’ve overheard everything, how-how I was supposed to be the toxic one in the relationship and how I was supposedly smothering her with my attention,” he said and Alec was just sitting there, listening, but inside he was plotting a way to get back at Camille because how fucking dared she make Magnus this sad?! “Rationally speaking I know that wasn’t what happened, I really do, but-”

“But? Magnus, there’s no buts, you’re anything but that. You’re kind and caring and giving and just-’’

“Like I said, I know that, but still,” said Magnus and shook his head. “Thinking that that was what lead her away from me, that I… that she  _ abandoned _ me because it was my own fault,” said Magnus in the end, finally voicing it out and he didn’t like the way that his heart was hammering against his ribcage, the way that he was nervous. “A lot of people have walked out of my life… like when I say a lot, I mean it, they all leave evetnually,” said Magnus and swallowed thickly, taking in a deep breath. Alec’s heart was broken and weeping for Magnus.  _ And who were the people that abandoned him?!  _ "So many people have left me and I-I just don’t deal with people leaving me well anymore, I… Camille knew that and that was exactly why she said what she said,” said Magnus bitterly. “And I can deal fine being on my own, like I’m really good at it, but-but I don’t-”

“Magnus,” whispered Alec and wanted to reach out to him at the first sign of Magnus’ lower lip shaking, but the other stopped him. No, he needed to finish. If he was opening up, then he was going to do it properly that time. Emotions were raw and he didn’t like it, but he wanted to do it.  _ Relationships took effort.  _ How were they going to grow together if they weren’t going to share things?

“It’s fine… I’m fine, I mean it,” said Magnus and puffed his cheeks. “I really don’t like this side of me, I don’t like being insecure, because they I really end up hurting the people that I love and who knows maybe it’s my own damn fault that they’ve all left me,” said Magnus and bit his lip. From his friends Catarina, Ragnor and Raphael were the only ones that stayed and he loved them so much. He loved all three of them with everything that he had and they’ve seen him at his lowest. And they didn’t walk away. “I did the same thing with you,” said Magnus in the end and Alec quickly shook his head.

“Magnus, you haven’t done anything wrong, it’s not your fault, it’s their loss, really because you’re amazing and you haven’t hurt me. I don’t even-”

“I did, today,” said Magnus and nodded. “I ruined our date, you were having such a good time and I-”

“Magnus, it was literally just one date, doesn’t mean that-”

“That’s how it starts,” said Magnus, biting his lip and he quickly glanced down. His lips was shaking again and he felt tears welling up in his eyes. “It starts with the small things, it-it only escelates away from there,” said Magnus and bit his lip. “I didn’t want to smother you with my attention so much that I ended up shutting you out,” said Magnus, laughing dryly. “And-and you leaving me,” said Magnus and his voice was breaking even more. Speaking of Alec leaving was what did it for Magnus and tears were there, Alec panicking. “I don’t think I could deal-deal because I love-” started Magnus, but didn’t get to finish as Alec finally heard enough and he just pulled Magnus into a tight hug, wrapping his arms around him. Magnus was shaking in his arms, he was shaking so much. Alec was just a mess as well, because how could Magnus ever think that he’d leave him? 

“Let me just stop you right here and tell you that I’m not going anywhere, okay?” asked Alec and Magnus hiccuped. “I mean it, I love you so much and you’ve never… God, Magnus,” said Alec and pulled back, kissing Magnus softly, shaking his head as he pressed their foreheads together. “I can’t ever get enough of you, I need you around me all the time. I mean the option where I would have too much of your attention just doesn’t exist,’’ said Alec and Magnus sniffled and then glanced down. His tears have dried and he felt… better, maybe. Lighter for sure. 

“I know, Alexander, I’m so sorry-”

“Camille should be sorry for ever opening her yap,” grumbled Alec and quickly softened up his voice when Magnus was looking up at him. “Not your fault,” said Alec and kissed Magnus again. “And it’s not stupid, it’s an insecurity and we all have these, it’s completely okay,” said Alec. “I’m glad you told me. I’m sorry if I ever made you feel like I was forcing you into telling me,” said Alec and Magnus quickly shook his head.

“No, I wanted to tell you myself for a long time now.”

“Thank you for opening up,” said Alec and bit his lip. “I just wish I knew how to fix this or-”

“Having you be here for be and listening is more than I could ever wish for and I do feel better now, yes… loads better, in fact,” said Magnus and took in a deep breath, nodding. Yep, better. So much. Alec huffed and nodded; he was happy to hear that. “I’m just so lucky to have met you,” said Magnus, cupping Alec’s face and he just smiled. “You love the ugly and the good-”

“There’s nothing ugly about you, Magnus,” said Alec quickly and Magnus’ voice trailed off, his heart jumping up to his throat and he just-

“I love you so much, Alexander,” said Magnus and Alec smiled.

“I love you too,” he breathed out before their lips in another kiss. 

  
  



	20. Chapter 20

“What is the meaning of this, Lightwood?” asked Imogen as she was done reading Alec’s letter of resignation and Alec took in a deep breath and placed his hands together behind his back and he then pressed his lips together because he knew that he needed to stay calm and he just smiled. It was really a miracle that he managed to write the letter, but it was because Magnus was there to help him. There was no way that Alec could make it sound that nice on his own and he just cleared his throat and then just nodded. “You’re quitting?” she asked and then slammed her fists against the desk and shook his head. “Underhill handed in a letter this morning too, mind explaining to me what is going on? Did the two of you find a better offer?” she asked and Alec was trying not to laugh because he could tell that the woman was desperate. And desperate didn’t look good on Imogen. Like, at all. 

“No,” said Alec and then bit his lip. “It’s like it says in the letter, I wanna try something new, I feel like I’ve reached my full potential here and I feel like it’s time to turn a new leaf,” he said and Imogen’s jaw dropped because in her opinion her company offered everything. And it did, honestly, Alec could reach so much more in the company, but he didn’t want to be a part of it. He much rather started from the bottom again and worked his way up. “I wanna see what else is there out for me,” he said. “I’m very thankful for the years that I’ve spent working here, I learned a lot, I have a lot more experiences now thanks to you, so I will forever be grateful for that,” he said and it felt so horrible to lie like that. He had never lied so much as he was lying at the moment.

“No, no, no, there has to be more to it, you’ve had to find someone that offered you a better deal,” said Imogen and she threw the letter away. Alec arched his brow because he didn’t think that she would have that kind of reaction, but then again, the company really did rely on him and Underhill a lot and he just laughed nervously. “Tell me, who is it? Is it the Branwells?” she asked and Alec snorted because he knew how much the woman hated them and he just shook his head. “How much are they offering you?” she asked and Alec shook his head again because she really wasn’t getting it and he was really close to telling her the truth.

“No, it’s really not-”

“I’ll give you a raise, you’ll get a new office with a much nicer view,” she said and Alec snorted, but then quickly stopped because he could tell that she didn’t appreciate it and he just glanced down.  _ Oh, too late, she should have appreciated him more and not only have started it now.  _ “I’ll pay you twice as much as you get now,” said Imogen and Alec’s jaw dropped because that was… that was a lot. He already made a lot and that amount of money really was inviting, but was it worth it? Alec pressed his lips together, biting into his lip and he just closed his eyes.

All those long hours slaving off it the office, all those times that he had to take the blame of others and being promoted did sound inviting, but at the same time, was he really ready to be put under even more stress? That would only add onto the unhappiness and at the end of the day no money was worth that. His mental health was much more important and in the end he just smiled sadly and shook his head. “That’s a very generous offer, but I cannot take it, I just, I really need to move on from this place,” said Alec, trying to be as polite as it was possible. “I’m just really unhappy and-”

“I’ll triple your salary!”

“Imogen, you’re not listening,” said Alec and raised his voice. Imogen quickly stopped talking and was shocked because not only that Alec called her by her first name, but he dared to raise his voice at her. “I don’t want the money, I just… I can’t continue working here anymore, it’s not good for me,” said Alec and the look on her face was pure confusion. God, just how thick could she be? Alec just clasped his hands together again and shook his head again. “Thank you, I appreciate your offer, I really do, but I need to move on, it’s holding me back,” he said and then bit his tongue. Right, he needed to be careful, he needed to watch what he was saying. Imogen was a powerful woman.

“How… how is this position holding you back, Lightwood?” snapped Imogen and for a change Alec wasn’t really afraid for her because he was quitting anyway and there wasn’t much that she could do to him anymore. Alec just rolled his eyes and Imogen was even more confused to see Lightwood behaving this way. He was always listening to her, never rolling his eyes at her and now… what in the world was this? “Do you know how many options I have given you? Do you know how far you can come if you stay here?” she asked and Alec really had to hold himself back from jumping at her right there and then and if she was going to continue to push it, he wasn’t going to be able to do it. 

“And I told you that I appreciate everything that you’ve done for my career, but I just need to move on from here, because I’m not happy, okay?’’ asked Alec, finally speaking up the truth and again Imogen was just surprised because she really didn’t understand that she was the reason for him quitting. Gosh, she really was… “I’m not happy here anymore and I need to move on, okay?”

“Why?” demanded to know Imogen and Alec was mentally meditating, thinking of his happy place. His happy place was somewhere with Magnus, just the two of them away from annoying people, drinking cocktails and enjoying their time together. Away from Imogen and other annoying people. Oh, it did the trick because Alec managed to calm down enough for him to explain it to Imogen calmly.

“There are just some aspects of this company that I… cannot support anymore,” said Alec and Imogen was just sitting there, having that surprised Pikachu face and Alec almost laughed. “It’s the way you run this company, Imogen, look I was really trying to spare you the real reason, but I… you’ve been treating me and my friend like… It was just not professional, that’s all that I can say,” said Alec. “I’ve been yelled at more by you than my own parents and this is just… I can’t deal with it anymore. I work long hours in my office, extra hours that, yes, you pay me, but I want more from life,” said Alec. “I can’t just slave in my office off for whole days, I want  _ more _ and I know that staying here would do me a lot of good, for my career it would be amazing, but career isn’t everything to me anymore, I want more, I want to enjoy life,” he said and Imogen was just sitting there, listening to him and for a change she didn’t have anything to say back.  _ She wasn’t going to yell back at him?  _

“I see,” said Imogen and then took in a deep breath. It seemed that suddenly she was aware of what has been going on and Alec just arched his brow and rubbed the back of his neck and then cleared his throat. So, he could leave now? Or he needed to stay longer? He really didn’t know what Imogen was going to say next and in the end Imogen just took in a deep breath. “Very well, I see you good luck in wherever you will continue working,” she said and Alec was just dumbfounded because what in the world was going on?!

“You’re not gonna yell at me?” blurted Alec out and he quickly bit his tongue because he knew that he was crossing the lines and Imogen sighed and just waved it off.

“No, but I’m also not gonna write you a recommendation letter,” said Imogen and Alec nodded. That was fair, he really didn’t care because- “Though I’ll say this - it’ll be hard for whoever is going to be taking your job in the future to fill in your shoes, Lightwood, you really were on of my best employees,” she said and Alec shook his head - yeah, why didn’t she show that before, huh?!

“Just a word of advice - make sure that you treat your employees nicer because Underhill and I won’t be the only one who will leave this place. I say this and it’s coming from a nice place,” said Alec and Imogen didn’t say much after that. Alec huffed under his breath and then he took in a deep breath.  _ Good, he was finally officially free from the devil company and now he felt a lot better.  _

This called for celebration!

* * *

“My dude, we’re finally free,” said Alec happily and then leaned back against the chair. He and Alec were finally out and enjoying their newfound freedom. Not for too long because they were already looking into finding a new job, but for the time being Alec was just going to enjoy it.  _ Properly.  _ Sighing happily, he took a big sip of his beer and then glanced around, his eyes searching for something or  _ someone.  _ The two of them were in a restaurant in which Magnus was a regular and since Magnus’ lunch break was soon coming into place, Alec decided to come there and surprise his boyfriend - that was if he was going there for his lunch break.  _ Alec hoped that he was going to show up because that way he could finally get to know Underhill a little bit better and get to know him as his friend and not only as his secretary.  _

“The feeling’s amazing,” said Underhill and happily grinned. “Can’t believe you actually dared to tell you why you’re leaving the job, boss, you’re brave,” he then carried on and Alec rolled his eyes and then snorted - still with the boss thing? He was insisting on calling him that for some reason and maybe before it made sense, but not anymore and Alec just crossed his arms on top of his chest and took in a deep breath. “What?”

“Not your boss - literally now,” said Alec and started laughing.

“I know, I know, it’s sort of a nickname at this point,” said Underhill and just shrugged, taking emptying his glass and he then looked around. Fancy place, this was. He was never there before, but it was nice. “Oh, this is a nice place by the way,” he said, still kind of curious to see why Alec had brought them there. It was kind of far from the place that they worked at and there were tons of other restaurants that they could grab lunch at, but Alec insisted on coming to this one.

“Oh, right,” said Alec and grinned all the way up to his ears and then waggled his eyebrows. “Actually, Magnus works near here and because this is his favourite restaurant and lunch break is coming, I thought that it would be a nice to surprise him,” said Alec and Underhill snorted. “You don’t mind, do you? I mean you two still don’t know each other too well, so I thought this would be the perfect chance for the two of you to meet and just… chill. I don’t know, is it a stupid idea?” asked Alec and Underhill started laughing, but in the end he just shook his head.

“I don’t think it’s a bad idea, but do you think he’d want that? The last time that I saw him, he didn’t look too impressed with me,” said Underhill. Magnus was jealous at the time, Underhill could tell, but he didn’t want to say it out loud, so he kept that part to himself and he just smiled. But he would like that - to get to know Magnus better and Alec was again looking around the place and was hoping that he would find Magnus but it seemed that his lunch break still wasn't there and he pouted. Instead, he turned over to Underhill and just laughed because he didn't get why Underhill would think that. Magnus seemed interested in him of all things and he just cocked his head to the side because he was interesting to know which incident Underhill had in mind. Magnus liked everyone! That was what was so amazing about him! He always saw the good in people!

"I'm not sure I'm following, Theo, of course he is going to be happy to meet you," said Alec and then bit his lip. "Why would you think so? You know, Magnus is always warm to people - unlike me - and gives everyone a chance," said Alec and Underhill nodded.  _ He wasn't saying that and he definitely didn't mean that.  _ It was just that back there in the office, he could notice… There was that look in his eyes, but then again back then he and Alec still weren't a thing from what Underhill gathered out of all of that. "I mean he was kind of into you, he called you _ my handsome friend _ ," said Alec and pouted.

"Oh, I'm flattered," joked Underhill and Alec narrowed his eyes. Alec still didn't get it though, did he? It was amazing just how dense Alec could be at times and it was pretty entertaining.

"See, so there's your proof," said Alec and then took in a deep breath. "I mean why else would he say that? He was pretty interested in you back then and I didn't like it. Was I jealous? Yes, yes I was and I'm not afraid to admit it," said Alec and he was still bothered by what Underhill said. "Do you have proof that he didn't like you? Did he say something?" asked Alec and Underhill just shook his head and was trying his best to hold back his laughter. Alec carried on his speech about how amazing Magnus was, but his voice quickly trailed off when Magnus suddenly stepped inside of the restaurant and his eyes widened.  _ Magnus was alone!  _ Perfect. Also. Alec was going to be more than happy to keep him company.

Underhill was about to point out to Alec that his boyfriend was finally there. However, as he was about to tell Alec that, the other was already up on his feet and quickly hid behind the wall. They were sitting just around the corner, so that made it a good hiding place for Alec. Underhill bit his lip and then shook his head when he saw Alec peeking from behind and he arched a brow. "Alec, what are you doing?" asked Underhill and Alec quickly shooshed him.

"This is all part of the plan. Now pretend like I'm not here," said Alec and Underhill opened his mouth to ask about this _ plan  _ but then quickly closed them again. If his experience with Alec had taught him it was that it was better not to ask any questions and just go along with whatever plan he came up with.

* * *

Magnus couldn't believe that all of his friends cancelled their lunch plans and he was just sulking as he made his way down his favourite restaurant. He seated himself pretty much immediately and checked up on his phone. Alexander was kind of silent that day and it made Magnus wonder if he finally handed in that letter or not. He wished him all the best and hoped that Alec was going to do it. It was still kind of early and he didn't want to bother Alexander with annoying questions about how it went. Still it made him wonder and he just smiled as he continued to think about his boyfriend and he bit his lip, signing.

Indeed a lot has happened during the weekend and Magnus was a changed man in the most delightful way that there could be - opening up to Alec was the right thing. It took him a while, but he was glad that he finally gathered enough courage to actually do it because he felt amazing. Sure. There were still quite a lot of things about his past that lead him to much insecurities that he needed to tell Alec, but for now he was content. He was beyond happy and it was a good sign because he wasn't over thinking things anymore. Camille didn't have power over him anymore and it was the most amazing feeling. Ever. Alexander was truly an angel. Always there for him.

Magnus was trying his best to keep his attention on the menu that the waitress has just brought over to him, but he read every second word as Alec and it was starting to get ridiculous. It was ridiculous how much he loved Alec and just as he started thinking about the colour of Alec's eyes, someone stepped behind him and he let out a startled shriek when the person placed their hands on top of his eyes and he gulped because he didn't know what was going on! "What the fuck is-" started Magnus, but then he heard a familiar voice behind him and he smiled instantly.

"Guess who?" whispered Alec into his ear and placed a kiss up on his cheek.

"Alexander, what are you doing here?" asked Magnus even before Alec removed his hands away from Magnus’ eyes and Alec just chuckled and lowered his hands. Magnus turned around and then stood up, his smile widening and he pressed his lips against Alec’s, taking in a deep breath and he giggled. “Oh, right, did you hand in your letter? How did she react? Tell me  _ everything?  _ Are you finally free away from that place?” asked Magnus all in one breath and Alec just chuckled and kissed his cheek again. Magnus was very excited to see him, wasn’t he? Then again, Alec was beyond excited to see his boyfriend as well and he just grinned.

“I am a free man indeed, I finally don’t work at that hell,” said Alec and placed his hands on top of his sides and then winked. “I finally gave her a piece of my mind. Do you know how desperate she was after I told her that I’m quitting? She was prepared to  _ triple _ the amount that she pays me now,” said Alec and shook his head.

“Oh, wow, desperate much?” asked Magnus and chuckled.

“Tell me about it,” said Alec. “But, yeah, she insisted on knowing why I really quit and I finally gave her a piece of mind, but in a very respective manner,” said Alec and thought about it. “Yeah, I was respective, as much respective as I possibly could and now I don’t work there anymore, what an amazing feeling it is,” said Alec and then hummed. “Right, because I needed to celebrate, I came here with Underhill. I know that this is your favourite place to come when you’re on lunch break and I wanted to surprise you,” said Alec and Magnus smiled, glancing over to the side and finally noticed Underhill sitting there. Suddenly Magnus felt very embarrassed because some time ago he was  _ really _ jealous of him. It was a stupid thing to do, it really was now that he was thinking about it and he just puffed his cheeks and waved over to him. 

“I see,” said Magnus.

“Yeah? It’s cool if we join you for lunch?” asked Alec and Magnus quickly nodded.

“Of course,” said Alec. “All my friends bailed our lunch plans anyway,” said Magnus and pouted.

“Oh, you poor thing,” said Alec with a little pout and placed the softest kiss of them all on top of Magnus’ lips and the other happily puckered up and returned him the kiss. “Then it’s a good thing that I showed up,” said Alec, teasing and Magnus nodded.

“As always, my hero,” said Magnus and winked. “And I would love to get to know your friend a bit better. I owe him an apology,” said Magnus and Alec arched a brow.  _ He owed an apology to who?  _ Oh, was Underhill right after all? Magnus could see that the other was confused and he snorted.

“I… what?!”

“I might had given him the glare back when… we weren’t a thing, I was just jealous,” said Magnus shyly. “Now that I say it out loud it doesn’t make a lot of sense, I know, and it’s kind of dumb, but still,” said Magnus and shrugged. 

Alec’s jaw hung open as he watched Magnus walk over to Underhill’s table and he cleared his throat - so both of them were jealous back then? Though now that he thought about it it did kind of make sense because Magnus was asking a lot of questions about Underhill, but he thought that it was…  _ oh, gosh, he was really dense back then, wasn’t he?  _ He was glad that he was doing much better about picking up things now!

Phew!


	21. Chapter 21

“Mmm, Magnus,” purred Alec into Magnus’ mouth as they were kissing, Mangus grinning and he pushed Alec lightly back against the bed, Alec letting out a little impatient groan and Magnus gave him a little wink as he quickly pounced on top of him and Alec started laughing, but his laughter died down as soon as Magnus inched his face closer and Alec just leaned up, supporting himself on his elbows and he crushed their lips together for the second time, his body slightly shaking as he felt Magnus sinking his teeth gently into his lower lip, pulling on it as he was pulling back a little bit, sucking it and then he let it go, kissing him again deeply, Alec giving into it and he tried his best to keep up with Magnus’ hot and heavy kisses. He was truly blessed, they have just returned back from a date and Magnus had a hard time keeping his hands off of Alec. Again, it’s been a while since the two of them have been intimate, Alec holding back because he could tell that Magnus wasn’t feeling well emotionally, but Magnus was back on top of his game and he couldn’t believe just how much he had missed this. Alec pressed up against him and he was  _ starving.  _ His thirst was growing and he needed to-

“Been too long,” groaned Magnus as he pulled Alec up into a sitting position, straddling his legs and he started pulling Alec’s shirt up, trying his best to pull it off as soon as it was possible and because he was kind of struggling as he was in a hurry, Alec decided to give him a bit of a helping hand, pulling his T-shirt off and Magnus happily grinned as his eyes fell upon Alec’s naked chest and he licked across his lower lip. “Missed seeing you like this,” he said and he placed his hand on top of Alec’s chest and pushed him down again. Alec didn’t complain at all and he happily moaned as he felt Magnus’ lips travelling lower, down his jaw, his neck and Magnus’ tongue was teasing him down his chest, Alec arching his back and he took in a hitched breath, clearing his throat.

“Agreed,” said Alec, laughing breathlessly because Magnus was already trying to get off his pants and he chuckled. “You’re really eager as I see,” said Alec, winking and Magnus glanced up, chuckling and he just bit his lip, but in the end he nodded. “Adorable, come here, need to kiss you,” said Alec because as much as he wanted to get straight to doing the deed, he wanted them to take things slowly this time. Also, he didn’t want this to end so soon, he wanted to drag it out a little bit and there was still that thing that was on his wish list - to see Magnus work that sex toy that he had mentioned using when he came over to Magnus for the wedding and a little sly smirk spread across his lips and Magnus was curious because that usually meant that Alec had an idea.

“You have something on your mind, huh?” asked Magnus and climbed back up and he pressed a little kiss against Alec’s jaw and Alec nodded. Alec wasn’t shy, he was going to say it loud and clear, feeling his heart beating a little bit faster. “Let me hear it,” muttered Magnus into Alec’s ear and he gently bit his earlobe. Alec gulped and he felt his throat getting dry again, trying his best to keep his mind working, but his head was getting foggy and he could feel Magnus’ tongue again doing wonders against his neck and Alec just buried his fingers into Magnus’ hair gently and allowed him to do as he pleased as he finally found the will to speak up, though the way Magnus was sucking in those little marks that he wore proudly into his neck was just as invitinand Magnus laughed because he could tell that Alec was struggling. “Cat got your tongue, darling?” teased Magnus and Alec flushed just a little bit - but not too much - and he finally took in a deep breath and grinned.

“I remember you saying that you have a dildo,” said Alec and Magnus gave him a little surprised look, but he quite quickly realised what Alec was aiming at and he just chuckled and nodded, humming along. Yes, and? 

“Indeed I do,” said Magnus, winking. “So, what should we do about that?” he asked because even though he knew that Alec was about to ask him if he could see him use it on himself - probably - he still wanted Alec to say it out loud. He loved when Alec talked dirty and when he was begging. Mixture of both was just so yummy and he just bit his lip, Alec grinning and he slid his hands down Magnus’ back and he stopped them on his hips, but not for long as he reached back with them and placed them on top of Magnus’ ass firmly, gently squeezing and Magnus let out a surprised gasp because he truly didn’t expect that, but he soon grinned again and Alec winked.

“I was doing some thinking for a while now and I think it would be really, really hot if you could show me how to use it,” said Alec and Magnus snorted, but moaned out lightly as Alec continued massaging his cheeks and his body was heating up more and more, pressing down against Alec and he softly gasped because Alec pushed him down even more. Magnus was laying in between Alec’s legs and he could easily feel his… “I mean I’ve never used a dildo and I would really like something like a… crash course,” said Alec and Magnus started laughing because Alec was just too much for him at times like this.

“Now this I don’t believe, you surely have used...” he started, but then forgot how to speak for a little while because Alec’s fingers were wandering around and they were getting closer to the sensitive spot. It was true that he was still wearing his jeans and underwear, but when it came to Alec he just couldn’t help himself. All of his senses were heightened and his sensitivity went through the roof when Alec touched him, taking in a deep breath and he tried his best not to moan too loud, but his jeans were already starting to feel a little bit tight and Alec could feel him getting hard..

“How about it? Wanna show me what you were doing the last time? You said you were riding it?” asked Alec, who was now the composed one and Magnus, biting into his lower lip and Alec chuckled because Magnus was moving his hips on his own. Did he even realise it? Magnus was rolling his hips, creating a little, but amazing friction and he curled his toes because it soon wasn’t enough. With all that teasing, Alec really didn’t give Magnus the time to properly respond to that request and Alec licked his lower lip and cleared his throat, slowly undoing the button of Magnus’ jeans and he slowly pulled them down just a little bit so that his ass was exposed and he spread his cheeks apart and chuckled as he watched Magnus’ face because his face was just such a turn on. Magnus’ eyes widened a little bit and he buried his face into Alec’s chest as he felt the other gently pressing up a finger against his entrance, Magnus’ fingers dripping on Alec’s shoulder and he mewled softly. “Wanna see you fuck yourself with it right here,” murmured Alec into Magnus’ ear, the other’s face getting even redder and in the end, Magnus managed a little nod. 

“Yes,” said Magnus in the end and just nodded, pushing his hips down a little bit and Alec grinned, quickly removing his hand and Magnus just whined because he wanted Alec to- “I will, anything for you, angel,” said Magnus in the end and finally pulled back because he needed to crawl over to the drawer and get it out. It wasn’t usually there, but last evening he was feeling extra turned on and he used it as well, biting into his lip and Alec was quickly up in a sitting position and he was already drooling. Oh, this was going to be so hot, he couldn’t wait! He was laughing under his breath as he watched Magnus crawl over to his drawer, his cute ass sticking halfway out of his jeans and he was just shaking his head. His smile disappeared through when Magnus returned back with all of the needed things and Alec’s jaw dropped when his eyes fell onto Magnus’ sex toy.

The first thing that managed to come into his mind was -  _ Magnus managed to take all of that inside?  _ It was a bit bigger than himself and he felt his cock stirring up in his pants because just the sheer thought of Magnus riding that thing made him so turned on, beyond belief. Cupping his hard dick through his jeans, Alec huffed under his breath and then gulped. “That’s huge,” said Alec, kind of blurting it out and Magnus winked, grinning and he nodded. “I mean, I can’t compare to it, it’s-”

“Oh, hush, Alexander,” said Magnus and then laughed softly because Alexander’s reaction was adorable. “It can’t compare to the real thing,” he then said, winking and Alec just nodded, but smiled because that was  _ good.  _ It was good that he knew that he was able to provide much more pleasure than that and he just sat back again and then took a deep breath. “Sit back and enjoy the view, I guess?” asked Magnus, kind of awkwardly because he hadn’t had anyone watch him while he did… that. He was kind of shy about it all of the sudden but that was what made it so exciting. And the way that Alec was devouring him with his eyes was really something else, his eyes dark with lust and hunger. 

Alec wanted to do something, so he quickly volunteered to help Magnus prep himself. “Let me start things get going and when you’re all stretched and ready to take this,” said Alec, taking the dildo into his hand and his breath shuddered for another time because, fuck, he was just too excited, gulping and he glanced back at Magnus. Magnus’ eyes were locked with Alec’s full of warmth, love, but also lust. Hunger. Need.  _ Holy fuck.  _ Alec then took the bottle of lube into his hand and gave Magnus a little wink. “Do we have a deal?” asked Alec and gave Magnus a little wink. Magnus nodded because that sounded amazing. He wanted to give Alec a little show, but having a helping hand - so to speak - never hurt anyone, a little sly smirk spreading across his face.

“How could I say no to such a  _ generous _ offer?” asked Magnus and gulped, glancing up and down Alec, who was still eating him up with his gaze and his smile grew a little bit. “How do you want me, Alexander?” asked Magnus softly and Alec glanced around the bed and quite quickly settled on the position in which Magnus was going to be the most comfortable. 

“Take these off and just lay down - let me take care of you,” said Alec, pointing to Magnus’ jeans and he gently pushed him back against the bed. Magnus didn’t have to be told twice, he quickly took off his jeans together with his underwear and then bit his lip as he waited for Alexander to join him down there as well. Magnus didn’t have to wait for too long as Alec was quite quickly kissing him again and as they were kissing, Alec slowly prompted Magnus’ legs up, gently holding them as he slowly started prepping Magnus for their latter activities and Magnus was just moaning, laying there, gripping on the bed sheet, wrapping his hand around the base of his cock as he really didn’t want to come too quickly. Alec’s fingers truly were skilled, Alec knew just where to touch, how to bend his fingers inside and soon as he had three of Alexander’s fingers inside of him, it was almost too much for Magnus, trying his best to hold out and Alec was checking his Magnus was okay as he was also eager to get to the main part - see Magnus play with his sex toy, his eyes darkening again and he slowly moved up so that he was face to face with Magnus and he gently cupped his face with his free hand and Magnus just leaned up and kissed him deeply.

“Alexander, enough, I’m ready, fuck,” gasped Magnus as he felt Alec pulling out his fingers and Alec gulped slowly, backing up a little bit and he pressed a little kiss upon Magnus’ forehead. “Y-you really took your time,” grumbled Magnus as his entire body felt like it was on fire and he slowly got up onto his knees, feeling kind of wobbly, but not too much. Alec slowly helped him keep his balance and Magnus just started laughing. “I can manage it, thank you,” said Magnus and pressed a kiss upon Alec’s nose.

“I know,” mumbled Alec and then bit his lip. “N-now what do I-”

“Sit back and e-enjoy the view, darling,” said Magnus in the end and Alec gulped, nodding and he really didn’t need to be told twice by then as his cock was about to burst, he needed to finally give it some attention as well and he was quickly sitting back, leaning against the bed frame, biting into his lip and Magnus started giggling. “Just like that, perfect,” said Magnus and winked. “Strip, though, not fair that I’m the only one that is naked,” said Magnus and Alec quickly got rid of the rest of the clothes that he was still wearing and Magnus’ mouth watered as he looked upon Alec’s hot and heavy cock that was resting against his belly and he groaned. “Amazing,” said Magnus.

“Fuck yeah it is,” said Alec, wrapping his fingers around the base of his cock and he gave himself a few lazy pumps just so that he finally got rid of some of that tension that he was feeling and he smiled. “Carry on, babe,” said Alec and Magnus nodded. Magnus then grabbed the dildo again and waggled his eyebrows as he decided to tease Alexander a little bit more and he licked around the tip of it, Alec whining. “That’s not fair,” he said and Magnus just started laughing. Alec knew how good Magnus’ tongue felt around his cock and it was such a waste that he was wasting his talents on that toy. 

“Jealous?” asked Magnus, teasingly of course and Alec just rolled his eyes. Of course he wasn’t…  _ jealous.  _ That was ridiculous. Magnus finally decided to stop stalling and he put a generous amount of lube onto the dildo and slowly lifted himself up on his knees, reaching back, holding the dildo with his own hand in place as he lined it up with his entrance and he slowly bent his knees, Alec’s eyes watching his every move and he cursed under his breath.  _ Fuck, now that Alexander was watching him… the feeling was a lot more intense.  _ Magnus has done it more than once with the dildo, but this was the first time that he felt this… excited? He bit his lip and tried his best to ignore Alec’s intense glance.

Biting into his lip, Magnus slowly started sinking down the dildo, gasping a little as he felt the first stretch and he then took in a deep breath. He lifted his hips a little bit, slowly moved them lower again, slowly opening up for the toy, taking in shallow and fast breaths and after a few minutes he managed to take the toy in all the way, down to the brim and Alec was just sitting there, staring, his mouth wide open and he was just… drooling. Yes, that he fucking was because Magnus was amazing, taking all that in and he was just… “Fuck, that’s the hottest thing I’ve ever seen,” escaped past Alec’s lips and Magnus laughed softly.

“Y-yeah?” asked Magnus, his toe curling and he moaned softly. That was quite the stretch, but he loved it. He held the dildo firmly down, pressing it against the mattress as he finally decided to start moving, lifting his hips slowly, picking up a slow and steady pace, pacing himself because he wanted this to last, adjusting the angle every now and then and Alec was a mess over there at the side.

“That’s it, fuck, Magnus, you’re doing so amazing,” urged him Alec and Magnus gave him a sheepish smile. “F-feels good?” asked Alec, still keeping his hand steady as he didn’t want to-

“Fuck yeah,” groaned Magnus and threw his head back because after a few tries he finally found his prostate and he sunk down the toy a bit too roughly, crying out in pleasure and Alec smiled because he knew that look, he knew that voice… so, so hot! Magnus decided to move a little bit faster, so he picked up a bit of a faster pace, wanting to feel more, his cock happily bouncing with him, leaning precum and Alec just-

“Magnus, can I get off with you?” asked Alec and then bit his lip again. “I’m trying to keep my hands to myself, but it-it’s impossible, you’re too hot and my dick feels like it’s about to burst,” whined Alec as he really wanted this to be about Magnus, but he couldn’t hold back anymore and Magnus just chuckled softly and nodded because of course - the pleasure should always be mutual, gasping softly and he just moaned out Alec’s name softly.

“O-of course, darling, fuck,” said Magnus and then closed his eyes for a split second because the pleasure was getting really intense and Alec gave him a little smirk, pumping his own cock slowly as he watched his boyfriend bounce up and down the dildo, Magnus’ legs and hips shaking and he could tell that Magnus was straining his muscles a bit too much, but Magnus loved it because he wanted it. He wanted Alexander to watch him more, he wanted Alec to see everything, sinking his teeth into his lower lip again and he looked over at Alec again and he smiled softly. “Fuck, this feels so fucking good,” kept chanting Magnus over and over again and Alec gave him a little shy grin and dragged his tongue over his lower lip.

Alec parted his legs a bit more as well, wanting to give Magnus a bit of a show as well and with his other hand he cupped his balls, squeezing his dick at the tip, his thighs shaking a little bit and he kept his eyes focused on Magnus. “You’re beautiful, Magnus, ah, if you could see yourself, you’re so good for me, s-so amazing,” managed to say Alec out in between his moans and his hand sped up and Magnus’ eyes darkened as he kept observing Alexander.  _ Who knew that mutual mastrubation could be this hot?  _

“G-God, Alexander,” said Magnus and mewled as he slammed his hips down, trying to get the dildo as deep as it was possible and he whined as he hit the really good spot and the corners of Alec’s lips turned up.

“Starting to feel that you like the dildo more than my dick, Magnus,” teased Alec, running his fingers of his free hand over his inner thighs and he chuckled.  _ Mmm, felt so good to press his fingers there! _ Magnus quickly shook his head in denial - it wasn’t like that. It was just because Alexander was watching, this was why he was being so- “No? You seem pretty content and, fuck, the noises you’re making Magnus, it’s-”

“N-no, it’s because you’re here and watching me,” confessed Magnus and Alec chuckled. Oh, so it was like that, was it?

“You like being watched, huh, Magnus?” asked Alec and winked.

“Only by you,” said Magnus, the hand that he was holding onto the dildo and pressing it down feeling kind of numb, but he didn’t care and he tilted his head to the side a little bit, wrapping his free hand around his cock and he started jerking his cock fast because he needed it. “O-oh, fuck, Alexander, this feels so fucking good,” was moaning Mangus over and over again and Alec had to brace himself because this was almost too much and he could feel his climax approaching. He was so, so close and he gritted his teeth.

“Fucking hell,” groaned Alec, got onto his knees and went closer to Magnus. He needed Magnus in his arms. He needed to kiss him, to touch him and he towered over him, kissing him deeply and Magnus sunk down onto the dildo, keeping it seated deeply inside as Alec was kissing him and as they pulled apart, Magnus was a mess. He dropped his hand down again and started jerking himself off, fast because he couldn’t hold himself back anymore and Alec continued to encourage him, whispering dirty little words into his ear.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck, I’m so close, Alexander, I-”

“Me too, Magnus, me too, I can’t-” groaned Alec, pumping his hard member fast and he couldn't hold himself back anymore as well. “Come, Magnus, come for me,” ordered Alec and Magus nodded, his toes curling as he let the pleasure to completely overcome him and he was coming soon, holding onto Alec, coming all over his hand and his sheet, Alec soon following him as well, coming with Magnus’ name on his lips, holding onto Magnus’ tightly and Magnus slowly sunk back down onto the bed, laying down because he felt like he needed a break. Magnus slowly pulled the toy out of himself and then took in a deep breath. 

“Mmm, your mind is superior, Alexander,” said Magnus and Alec arched his brow as he lied back down to his boyfriend, kissing his cheek and he didn’t quite get what Magnus was aiming at.

“It is?”

“Of course, this,” said Magnus and hummed happily. “Was amazing,” said Magnus and winked. 

“Oh,” said Alec and flushed a bit. “Of course, my mind is superior.”

“That it is,” said Magnus and then prompted himself up onto his elbows. “Do you have something else you want us to try out in the bedroom? Because I’m pretty much up for everything,” said Magnus and winked. Alec perked up and his mind was already wandering off to places!

“What is your opinion on handcuffs? It’s completely okay if you don’t-”

“I own a pair, so I guess that answers that,” said Magnus and winked. Alec grinned and then waggled his eyebrows. Magnus was about to say something, but Alec just kissed him and then pulled him closer, cuddling him and Magnus couldn’t say no to those cuddles!


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I'm posting the fic has 399 kudos and I just wanna thank you all for so much support, we're nearing 400 kudos and I am just so grateful, thank you for all the support. Love you all <3 it means so much to me <3

“Honey, when can we finally have a little dinner with Magnus? Come on, we’ve met him, he has met all of us, so I don’t understand why you’re stalling so much,” said Maryse and crossed her arms on top of her chest.

Alec chuckled; he was visiting his parents and he knew that they were going to ask him all about that dinner again. It always happened that he was visiting and maybe it was finally the time to have a more serious talk about it with Magnus. His parents were very excited about it and he couldn’t deny that he also wanted them to have dinner. It didn’t feel too soon, it didn’t feel odd anymore, if felt right and he just bit his lip. His mother pouted and then pressed her lips together. So, it was still a no? She was really looking forward to meeting Magnus a bit better. She already knew that he was a great person, because he did plan Jace’s wedding, but she didn’t really know that much about it. And Robert was very much of the same opinion. 

Robert currently wasn’t home, but Alec knew that he would be the first one to support his mother and Alec just laughed because both of his parents really tried to be as involved with his life as it was possible. All was coming from a good place and Alec never held it against them, biting into his lip and he then clasped his hands together. Max, who was sitting over at the dining table and was eating his late lunch as Alec was the one that had picked him up from school and brought him home that day. “Alec, you better soon agree because that’s all that mom and dad have been talking about for the past few weeks and if they don’t stop soon, I’ll come live with you, so this is all on you,” said Max, grumbling kind of and Alec laughed softly, glanced over at his mother and he then nodded in the end.

“I will talk about it with him, I’ll ask him if he thinks that we should finally have this family dinner,” said Alec happily and then puffed his cheeks and then glanced down a little bit because he still had something to tell his parents. He needed to tell them that he quit his previous job and because Imogen was a family friend he thought that they knew already, but it seemed that for this once she kept her mouth shut. It was an improvement, honestly, and Alec just rubbed his palms together. He felt kind of nervous telling his mom about that, but she also knew that he was an adult and was old enough to know what was best for him. After all, that was what they always taught that that was important - happiness in life.

“Great, I’ll let Robert know, he’ll be so happy,” said Maryse and Alec grinned and then nodded, humming happily.

“Yes, just don’t get too excited about it, okay?” asked Alec and Maryse arched a brow. “You know how he gets, he was texting me constantly after Magnus accepted his friend request on Facebook,” said Alec and Maryse then promised that she was going to have a little talk with her husband, but she couldn’t promise too much because she was also guilty of getting too excited about certain things. But she honestly couldn’t help it, she was just so happy to see her son being so happy in a new relationship. Alec was literally glowing, so maybe something else happened recently?

“Very well, Alec, you have nothing to worry about it. Your father and I will tone it down a notch,” said Maryse and Max snorted as he was eating the food and Maryse glanced at him and narrowed her eyes. Oh, she didn’t look too amused at all, but in the end she just started laughing softly. Yep, even Magnus knew better.

“Mom, you need to dial it down like… ten notches, or hundred, you’ll send Magnus running away,” said Max and Alec was laughing silently. “Let me have a talk with Magnus, Alec, we are friends now,” said Max and Alec in the end just waved it off, letting his little brother know that he had everything under control. Alec smiled because he was really happy about how good Max and Magnus were getting along. They would call each other every now and then and chat about the games that they liked.

Magnus was really glowing, he was going to be a great father one day.  _ Then again his brother wasn’t a kid anymore.  _ At least that was what he liked to claim. “Okay, Max, we’ve got it all covered,” said Alec in the end and Max just gave him thumbs up, but he knew that his brother was going to need his help eventually. 

“Max always does have interesting ideas,” said Maryse and then smiled softly. “Again, thank you so much for picking him up today, I was kind of surprised though,” said Maryse and Alec arched a brow. “Is it your day off?” asked Maryse. “You’re usually in your office at this time,” she said. She was also home early that day, but that was besides the point. Alec puffed his cheeks and then nodded. Right, maybe she should just tell her? He knew that his mom was going to understand it, it was his father that he was a bit more worried about it because he really did try a lot to get him into Imogen’s company. 

“Ah, right, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about,” said Alec and Maryse just nodded, listening patiently. “It’s not my day off today, actually, I’m,” he said and then clasped his hands together. His heart was beating a bit faster, but then he just shook his head and decided to stop worrying too much about it. He was an adult, so he needed to act like one as well! “I recently quit, actually,” said Alec finally in the end and Max’ jaw dropped. Maryse also looked pretty surprised and she then took a while before she spoke up, because it was quite a lot to process.

“Good for you Alec, you’re finally free of that cold blooded Imogen,” said Max in the end and Alec snorted, but then stopped laughing because his mother wasn’t laughing. But Max knew how much Alec hated working there, so if that was what made him happy, why not? Max didn’t like making too big of a deal and if there was something that he didn’t like, he just didn’t do it. It was simple. 

“You were fired?” asked Maryse carefully.

“Oh, no,” said Alec. “I quit myself because I was really unhappy there, mom,” said Alec and shook his head. “I know how much dad tried for me to work there, but I just… I mean Imogen offered me a shit ton of money so that she would make me stay there, but it just got to the point that just the sheer thought of going to work made me cry, I couldn’t handle it anymore,” said Alec. “So, I decided that it would be for the best for me to move on and find something else. I quit a week ago and I’m actively searching for a new job,” said Alec quickly and Maryse sighed in relief.

“Good on you, honey, that woman’s a snake,” said Maryse and Alec was shocked because she thought that the two of them were… friends? No? And she wasn’t mad? Like at all? She heard that part about the raise, right?

“Mom, that’s an insult to snakes, snakes are highly intelligent beings and very affectionate,” piped up Max and Maryse quickly apologised. 

“Yes, that’s correct, I’m so sorry,” said Mayrse and Alec’s eyes widened even more so.

“You’re not mad?” asked Alec.

“Why would I-”

“You did hear that part about her offering me a raise, right?” asked Alec because he still didn’t completely get it that his mother wasn’t upset about it. He was happy, yes, but usually she would at least give him a little speech or something like this. But it seemed that she didn’t like Imogen as much as he. “I mean she was desperate, mom, she wanted to pay me three times the amount in the end and I just walked out on all of it. I did the right thing, I know, but are you sure that you’re-” he started, but then Maryse started laughing softly and Alec just cocked his head to the side. He really didn’t understand what was happening and Max just face-palmed himself at the side.  _ Alec should just take it as a win and stop talking about it so much.  _ Because-

“Ugh, never liked that woman, Alec, I really… I mean I don’t want to say that I hate her, because hate is a strong word and I never want to hate anyone because it’s, well, yeah… but I really don’t like her,” said Maryse in the end and Alec’s jaw dropped. That was news to him, but he was so happy to hear that. Just the sheer thought of his parents really liking her made him just… ugh. It was a scary thing to think about and he just took in a deep breath. Okay, his mom wasn’t mad about this. This was amazing! What about his dad? Was he going to freak out?! “I told Robert that sending you to work there was a bad idea,” said Maryse and Alec bit his lip because he didn’t want to completely discredit his dad.

“I mean I did learn a lot and it meant a lot to dad, so,” said Alec, shrugging. “It was fun at the start, until she started taking advantage of me and nobody was doing their job anymore. Then it was just torture,” said Alec and Maryse gave him a little nod. “Are you sure that dad isn’t going to be disappointed that I threw away all of his hard work? He did get me that job because he wanted me to have good options with the career and all of that. And i just kind of-”

“Robert isn’t going to be disappointed in you, come on, honey, you know that Robert and I just want you all to be happy,” said Maryse and shrugged. “Robert doesn’t like that woman all too much as well, so I don’t think he’ll be too devastated,” said Maryse and gave him a little wink, trying to cheer him up. “Besides, you’re old enough to make your own decisions, so you know what’s best for you,” she said and that was something that he expected to hear, his smile growing and he just clasped his hands together.

“Thanks, mom,” said Alec happily and Maryse just gently ruffled his hair. 

* * *

“Busy?” asked Magnus as he walked over to Alec. He was visiting Alec’s place, he was done with work for that day and he decided to drop by, Alec of course more than happy about it and he happily hummed as he felt Magnus pressing a little kiss on top of his head. Alec was sitting behind his computer and appeared to be busy. Magnus at first thought that he was disturbing, but then he reminded himself that this was just his insecurity talking.  _ He knew that he would never be a bother to Alec.  _ And just like that all of the worries were away, a smile on his lips widening and he wrapped his arms around Alec’s shoulders, who happily leaned back and Magnus was curiously looking at the screen of Alec’s laptop. “What are you up to?” asked Magnus as he saw that Alec was reading some details about employment of a company that he didn’t get the name of yet.

“Looking for a job,” said Alec happily and Magnus smiled, pressing in a little kiss against Alec’s cheek.

“That’s my man, always so hard-working, you’re amazing, Alexander,” whispered Magnus into his ear and Alec just smiled, leaning back and he pressed a kiss against Magnus’ lips, both of them happily humming and Magnus then decided to join Alec on the couch. “Found anything interesting yet?” asked Magnus curiously and Alec nodded, but he was also very unsure. He needed an opinion and because Magnus knew a lot of people, maybe he could tell him more about this offer that he found!

“Kind of, but I don’t know,” said Alec and Magnus gave him a little smile.

“Need help?” offered Magnus and Alec nodded.

“Yeah, kind of,” said Alec. “I’ve been looking through some offers and there’s this pretty great offer at a company that is run by Luke Garroway,” said Alec and Magnus’ eyes immediately widened. Oh, yes, he had heard of him before and from what he heard, he was a pretty nice boss! “I don’t care about how much they pay me, I really don’t, I just want to find an environment that isn’t like the last one, I want a boss that will be nice to me and-”

“Alexander, write to them, now!” said Magnus and Alec cocked his head to the side.

“Okay?” asked Alec and then his eyes widened as well. “Do you know him? Luke?” asked Alec and Magnus nodded.

“I mean I’ve only heard of him, yes,” said Magnus and Alec perked up. “They all say he’s the nicest boss ever and when you become a part of his firm, you don’t become just another employee, but you become a part of a pack,” said Magnus and snorted. “Sounds ridiculous, I know, but,” he said. “That goes to show that he really cares and takes care of his employees. I think you should send them your resume and hope you get a job interview with them,” said Magnus quickly and Alec looked back at the screen. 

Oh, that all sounded very nice indeed and he then bit his lip. But it wasn’t too soon, was it? Maybe he should have taken a little bit of a break? But if Magnus really said so… and the salary wasn’t all that bad either. Biting into his lip, Alec took in a deep breath and then decided to trust Magnus. Magnus was always right and all of his advice was amazing! “Should I contact them then?” asked Alec and Magnus quickly nodded. “I mean it’s not like I’ll get the job, probably, so maybe I shouldn’t get my hopes up too much,” said Alec.

“Alexander, stop bringing yourself down like this, but yes, you should send them an email,” said Magnus, winking and Alec then nodded. “And I mean it, you should be more positive about it,” said Magnus and Alec wanted to come back with the usual  _ Yes, I’m pretty positive about the fact that I will not get a job,  _ but then he decided not to do so because Magnus has asked him not to put himself down like this and he didn’t want to make Magnus sad. So, he kept it to himself and then he just read through all the things that they needed him to send over and luckily he already had everything ready.

Yeah, he wasn’t playing around.

“Oh, I need to email Theo about it too, then,” said Alec and Magnus smiled. Yes, he heard about it the last time that they all hung out - Alec and Underhill were going to get employed at the same place again and he found that so nice and adorable actually. Their friendship was amazing and Magnus had gotten to know Underhill a little bit better. He was a pretty nice guy and he just leaned over to Alec to see what he was up to then and he saw that Alec was writing that email to Undehrill already, linking him the site and he then nodded and rubbed his palms together. 

Alec made sure to tell Underhill all about what Magnus had to say about this Luke Garroway and apparently, Underhill had heard of him as well because he was immediately up for it and Alec didn’t hesitate anymore because he had two people telling him so many good things about this new potential boss of his. That was why he just send everything in an email, making sure to make himself sound as available and nice that was possible and he then took in a deep breath as he hovered his mouse over the  _ sent _ button and Magnus snorted when he saw that Alec was having… second thoughts? He couldn’t really tell what was up and he just grinned.

“Second thoughts?” asked Magnus.

“Nope,” said Alec. “I’m just a baby,” he said and shook his head. “I wrote everything nicely, yes? I mean I did rewrite the email about three times, but maybe I should add a few more things into it?” asked Alec and Magnus bit his lip. He was there to witness the whole writing process and in the end Magnus just held his hand and told him to take in a deep breath. “Yes, you’re right, I’m overthinking already, you see?! I’m horrible at-”

“That is the best email I’ve ever read. I would hire you for my company immediately if I got such an email,” said Magnus and winked. Alec flushed and then looked down.

“You’d be biased,” teased Alec.

“Psh,” said Magnus. “So? I’m supposed to be biased, you’re my boyfriend,” said Magnus happily and leaned towards Alec and he smiled as he felt Alec kissing his cheek. “So, how did your folks take the news?” asked Magnus because he knew that Alec was going to tell him parents about him quitting his job and Alec just shrugged.

“Better than expected,” said Alec and snorted. “My mom was actually happy about me quitting,” he said and then bit his lip because her comments about Imogen still made him laugh and he then puffed his cheeks. Not too long after he told Maryse about quitting his job, his dad also came back home and he had a bit of a harder time of accepting it all. “My dad, on the other hand,” said Alec and Magnus nodded, quickly grabbing his hand, prepared to console his boyfriend. “Eventually he accepted it. He hates Imogen as well, this is hilarious, but he was just worried if it was the right thing to do in the long run, that’s all,” said Alec and smiled softly. “He didn’t really try to talk me out of it, he respects my decision and that’s what I love so much about them,” said Alec and smiled happily. “They truly want all of us to be happy,” he said and Magnus gave him a little smile. 

“That’s amazing,” said Magnus softly. “That’s the main thing that matters - your happiness,” said Magnus and Alec gave him a little nod and linked their fingers together, his thumb caressing the back of Magnus’ hand and he then took in a deep breath.

“You know that visiting my parents doesn’t happen without the traditional question about that family dinner they’ve been inviting us for weeks now,” said Alec and Magnus chuckled. Right, he knew all about that. 

“Again?”

“Yeah,” said Alec and then smiled softly. “But I’ve been thinking… I mean we’ve been going out for quite a while now and we are taking things slowly, yes?” asked Alec and Magnus nodded. “So perhaps the dinner should finally happen? That is if you feel ready, if you think it’s still too soon then I’ll completely understand,” said Alec and Magus smiled, shaking his head.

“I don’t think it’s too soon at all,” said Magnus calmly and Alec sighed in relief. “I’d like that, yeah, your parents are amazing and I would love to get to know them a little bit better,” he said and then bit his lip. An evening with all of them together sounded amazing. Alec’s parents were kind and amazing. “Maybe I should text your dad over the messenger and ask him what time would be the most suitable for them?” asked Magnus curiously and Alec grinned, nodding because he knew just how much his father was going to be excited. Oh, Robert would definitely be beyond excited about it. 

“You do that,” said Alec and winked. Magnus happily clapped, pulled out his phone and texted Robert about the dinner. He got the reply back from him pretty much immediately and Alec started laughing as he read his father’s reply. There were a lot of emoticons in the text and he never used them so that just went to show how excited he was about the whole thing. 

“Oh, he’s excited,” said Magnus and Alec laughed, wrapping his arms around Magnus as he was texting Robert back, telling him that Friday was more than perfect to have that dinner. Alec’s heart melted.

“I just love you so much, Magnus,” said Alec and Magnus smiled.

“Love you too,” said Magnus back and locked his phone, glancing back at Alec and leaned up, kissing him again.  _ Oh, Friday was going to be amazing!  _


	23. Chapter 23

The doorbell rang and Max was the first one on his legs. It was finally Friday evening and Max was very excited about the family dinner. As all the Lightwoods were, because Maryse and Robert were fussing over it in the kitchen for the entire afternoon with cooking and all that jazz. A bit later into the day, Izzy and Jace also came over as they were all invited for this fancy dinner and Max was also very excited! He wanted to show off his cool new game that Jace had gotten for him and as soon as the doorbell rang, he was over there at the door, waiting for Magnus (and his brother, too, yes, he never forgot his big brother). Izzy was laughing the way Max launched up from the couch and literally ran over to the door, glancing over at Jace, nudging him with her elbow.

“Remember what we said, Max… about dialing it down ten notches?” asked Jace because Maryse told him what Max had advised to her and Robert, but it seemed that that rule didn’t apply to the boy, who was already unlocking the door and Max just glared at him and waved it off.  _ Pssh, what did he know?  _ Happy, Max finally unlocked the door and smiled because there really were Magnud and Alec standing there in front of the door, holding hands and Max broadly smiled.

“The rule doesn’t apply to him, Jace,” whispered Izzy and the blonde one was laughing softly. “It’s because he’s a kid,” she then carried on as that was an excuse that he liked to use when he wanted to get out of something, or when things would apply to everyone else  _ but _ him. “Funny how he’s comfortable with being called a kid only when it’s suitable for him, huh,” teased Izzy and Jace was laughing next to her. Luckily Max didn’t hear them as he was too busy with welcoming the guest into their house like the perfect host should have been.

“Magnus, Alec, you’re finally here!” cheered the boy and Alec was a bit taken back when he saw his brother welcoming them into their house. He kind of expected his parents to take on such an important job and he was just smiling as he watched Magnus interact with his younger brother. He truly was adorable when he was around kids, biting into his lip and he just clasped his hands together. Magnus, on the other hand, had a wine bottle in his hand… It was meant to be a little gift for Alexander’s parents, but when he saw Max he quickly hid the wine bottle behind his back and just smiled.

“Hello, Max,” said Magnus happily and Max narrowed his eyes. “Alexander, take this,” said Magnus and handed the wine bottle over to his boyfriend, who happily took it and his smile widened when his mother and father finally made an entrance, stepping out of the kitchen and they both wore big smiles on their face, Magnus feeling a little bit nervous, but then again he knew that he shouldn’t be  _ too _ nervous. It wasn’t like he was meeting them for the first time ever, but at the same time, he knew that it was a lot different than all the previous times because back then he wasn’t dating their son. So, yes, he still needed to make a good impression on them and he quickly walked over to Robert, shaking his hand. 

“Thank you for inviting me to your lovely home, Robert and Maryse,” said Magnus and as he walked over to Maryse to shaking her hand, she just pulled him into a hug and Magnus’ eyes widened because that was something that he didn’t expect, but it was definitely a welcome thing. He hugged the woman back and then smiled as they both pulled back and he clasped his hands together.

“It’s so nice that you finally joined us for the family dinner, we’ve been very excited about it,” said Robert happily and Magnus was laughing internally because  _ that was very clear to him, yes.  _ But he didn’t make a comment about it, even though Alec was trying his best not to crack up next to them. “Maryse and I prepared something lovely and I hope you’ll enjoy it in our company,” carried on Alec’s father and Magnus just gave him a little smile.

“Of course I will,” said Magnus and then nodded. “You have such a lovely home, too.”

“Oh, thank you, I actually managed most of the decorations and stuff like that,” said Maryse happily and Alec chuckled. He told Magnus all about that and that was why Magnus brought it up, then again… it was really a lovely home. But Magnus wanted to score more points with them and that was why he brought it up, biting into his lip and he then grinned when he saw Izzy and Jace standing over there at the side, clearing his throat and he walked over to his friends, Alec going over to his mom and dad to hand them the gift that Magnus brought over for the two of them.

“Magnus, my man, you finally came,” said Jace, hugging his friend and Magnus just happily hugged him back. It’s been a while since he had last seen both of them. “Clary says hi, by the way, she sadly couldn’t make it to the dinner because she has a very important meeting at the gallery. She is finally going to have her very first exhibit, my wife is truly amazing,” said Jace happily and Magnus snorted because that was amazing - he was very proud of Biscuit as well and he turned over to Alec.

“Did you hear that, Alexander?” asked Magnus and Alec smiled. “We will totally go to the opening of her art exhibit, I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Biscuit is a very talented artist after all, never doubted it,” said Magnus and then grinned when Izzy stepped over to him and gave him a little hug as well. 

“It’s so good to see you again, Magnus,” said Izzy and Magnus just smiled.

“Indeed it is,” said Magnus. “We should meet up sometime and catch up on everything that-” started Magnus, but then he felt someone tugging at his hand and he looked over to his side, where he saw Max, who was very desperately trying to get his attention. Izzy chuckled because she knew just how excited the other was and Alec quickly shook his head, wanting to get over there and break it all up because he didn’t want his family to send Magnus running out of the door. He just wanted things to go nice and slow, but there was Max-

“Magnus!” said Max. “Come up to my room, I wanna show you this cool game that Jace got me,” said Max happily and Magnus’ eyes lit up almost immediately and he nodded happily. Alec, on the other hand, didn’t know if that was a wise idea and he quickly stepped closer to his brother and boyfriend and shook his head.

“Max, don’t hog my boyfriend. He’s here to have a lovely dinner with all of us, so-”

“Alexander, it’s completely okay, I really don’t mind. Also, I kinda wanna see what kind of a game it is,” said Magnus quickly and Max happily smiled. There, Alec got his answer and Alec just chewed on his lower lip. Well, even if Magnus was uncomfortable with all of it, he would never voice it out loud because he was too nice. But he also knew how much Magnus loved games and he didn’t want to come in the middle of that. He just thought that they would all be together and-

“There you have it, Alec. Magnus, let’s go,” said Max and started dragging Magnus towards his room. Robert and Maryse were laughing because they were in awe of how much Max liked Magnus. He was never like this when one of their children would bring home their significant other to introduce them to the family. Even with Simon and Clary, Max needed a bit of time to warm up to them, but with Magnus it was instant and they just smiled.

“Mom, dad, tell Max that he can’t drag  _ my _ boyfriend over to his room because the dinner will be served soon,” said Alec, maybe even demanded it and his parents looked at each other and then they just shrugged.

“It’ll take a bit longer for it to be all cooked and for the table to be all set, so,” said Maryse because the boys were quite a bit early for the dinner and she just clasped her hands together. Alec rolled his eyes and looked at his dad, who just shrugged it and then he rolled his eyes.  _ Fine.  _

“Okay, okay,” said Alec and Magnus grinned, going over to him and he kissed that adorable pout off of his lips and Alec only smiled in the end as he watched Max run up the stairs and Magnus followed him, softly laughing under his breath. Alec then took in a deep breath, his parents going back to the kitchen to check up on the food. Izzy and Jace stepped closer to him, his brother wrapping an arm around his shoulders and he just laughed. 

“Cheer up, buddy,” said Jace.

“I know, I am… I mean I will, I just wanted this to be a chill dinner and-”

“Okay let me stop you right there, Alec. Chill?” asked Izzy and Alec arched his brow. “Have you met our family? You do know how much they fussed over when I brought Simon over for the first time?” asked Izzy and Alec only nodded, snorting because that was rather funny actually. Jace could relate, they could all relate.

“Or when I invited Clary over,” said Jace and Alec just nodded. Yep, they all had a point. Their family wasn’t chill, but at the same time it was perfect the way that it was. Alec wouldn’t want it any other way and he just smiled, happily looking up the stairs and he could hear Max and Magnus talking. He was about to go check up on them, but then their parents called up the three of them to help them set up the table.

* * *

The dinner was going great, Alec finally managed to tell his family that he was applying for a new job at the Garroway company and his father was thrilled about the news. Apparently he had heard all about this Luke Garroway and he truly was like everyone else told him - nice and kind! And Alec was quite excited about that. He still didn’t get any reply back from them, but then again, it was still too early into it. He was patiently waiting for any kind of reply and he was just happy to see that the dinner was turning out to be such an amazing experience for all of them. Magnus was happily chatting with Izzy and Jace over at the side, Max happily chiming in every now and then and Alec glanced over at his mother and father, who were happily gazing and Alec chuckled because they were really  _ excited.  _

Alec was really just so thankful to the two of them. He felt like he and Magnus connected even more and he was just biting on his lip as he was watching Magnus, who then turned to his mom and dad and decided to say something. He needed to thank them for such a lovely dinner. It was truly the most delicious thing he had in a while and he smiled all the way up to his ears. It was such a lovely dinner after all; Magnus loved Alec’s parents. They were just so kind, open-minded and accepting people. They accepted him with open arms into their home and he was very grateful for that.

“Can I just say - this was the most delicious dinner that I’ve had in a long time,” said Magnus and Maryse giggled, while Robert was just smiling there, shining with pride. Alec rolled his eyes, but it did make him smile to see just how much Magnus’ compliment made Robert smile. “It was such a lovely evening, should have done this way sooner,” said Magnus and Alec’s parents only smiled, Maryse waving it off.

“We were a bit too pushy with it at the beginning of it all, we realise that,” said Maryse and Magnus just shook his head, but Alec was quick to nod and agree with his mother because they were… especially Robert. But it was hilarious at the same time and he just leaned back in his chair.

“It was amazing, yeah,” said Alec and happily reached over and held Magnus’ hand, who linked their fingers together and then Maryse clasped her hands together.  _ They looked so happy together.  _ Young love, ah, there wasn’t anything better than that. Grinning, she leaned back in her chair as well and nodded.

Magnus was really,  _ really  _ happy. For once he was included into something - a family activity. Magnus was feeling kind of nervous about the family dinner, but he realised that he was just projecting his own fears onto it. The Lightwoods really made him feel like he belonged there and it was a feeling that he wasn’t quite used to it. But he loved it and he was just gripped onto Alec’s hand a little bit tighter. Alec quickly turned to him, but Magnus just shook his head and then just smiled, looking over at Magnus’ parents again.

“Maryse, you really do have to email me some of the recipes you and your husband own, because I wanna also try making something as delicious as you two have just made,” said Magnus and Alec’s mother just giggled and then glanced over to her son.

“He really is a charmer, like you said,” said Maryse and Alec just snorted, while Magnus started laughing. “And you bet, you’re a part of this family now, Magnus, you get to access all of Lightwoods’ family recipes,” joked the woman and winked. Magnus smiled back and his heart made a little jump. It was a completely normal thing to say, it wasn’t nothing special, but just the fact that she said that he was a part of their family warmed his heart up and he happily nodded. That was amazing. 

“I’d like that, yes,” said Magnus and Robert clasped his hands together.

The dinner was over and now the part that nobody was looking forward to was coming - the cleaning up of the dining table. It was really a pain in the ass, but well… it was for the greater good. “Why don’t you kids go have fun in the living room while Maryse and I take care of this mess on the table?” asked Robert. Usually he would whine about the kids helping them as well, but this time he didn’t as Magnus was there and first impressions were what mattered.  _ Magnus wasn’t the only one who wanted to make a good impression. _

“Oh, I can help you,” said Magnus quickly and Maryse quickly shook his head, but it made her smile because it showed just what kind of an amazing person Magnus was!

“Oh, you don’t have to. You’re a guest, please, just sit down and let me and my husband take care of it,” said Maryse, but Izzy quickly stood up and shook her head. Maybe she wasn’t good at  _ cooking _ , but she was damn amazing at cleaning up and after all the hard work that Robert and Maryse did in the kitchen, she decided that it was on them to help them out.

“Mom, it’s okay, you and dad go to the living room with Alec and Magnus, the three of us will take care of it,” she said and pointed to herself, Max and Jace. Max’s jaw dropped and he quickly shook his head. Usually he was excused because he was the youngest one among them and-

“Iz, remember, I’m a child? I cannot-”

“Child, really? Then who was arguing with me two days ago when I took you shopping that you don’t need to shop at the children's corner anymore because you’re a big, strong man now?” asked Izzy and Max just flushed up all to his ears and didn’t say anything anymore. He just plopped down from his chair, picked up his empty plate and carried it over to the kitchen. Magnus chuckled and Alec was shaking with laughter. His siblings were amazing.  _ He was also going to help them with the task, he was just going to-  _

Robert laughed and then shook his head. “Ah, yes, this was a lot of fun,” said Robert and Magnus nodded. “Maybe we could do this again? Next time we could invite over your parents as well and it would be a big family gathering,” he said and neither Robert and Maryse could tell, but Alec could see that something was  _ wrong.  _

Alec couldn’t really explain it, but he knew Magnus well enough to know that that twitch of his lips and the slight glance down didn’t mean anything good. Magnus was silent for the time being, but he managed to pull himself together and he forced a little smile, nodding. “Yeah,” said Magnus and Alec frowned. His voice also sounded  _ off _ . “That would, um, that would be lovely,” said Magnus in the end, Maryse and Robert happily smiling. They didn’t notice the way that Magnus’ smile sunk as they glanced down. 

They didn’t, but Alec surely did.

* * *

“You sure you’re feeling okay?” asked Alec for what felt like the tenth time and Magnus just smiled and nodded. Yes, of course he was okay, why wouldn’t he be? He spent an amazing evening with the Lightwoods, everything was amazing. Alexander’s parents loved him, everything was perfect on the outside. But, yes, there was something bothering Magnus, yet he didn’t really want to ruin the perfect evening with whining about his own problem again.  _ But then again they had that talk more than once; he needed to open up more to Alec.  _ He knew that, yes, but he didn’t want to ruin the evening.

“Of course I’m okay, Alexander, why wouldn’t I be?” asked Magnus and sat down onto Alec’s couch and took in a deep breath and hummed happily. “We spent a lovely evening with your parents, everything was perfect, so why wouldn’t I be okay?” asked Magnus and waved it off. 

Alec cocked his head to the side - he still didn’t buy it, not really. And there was something that Magnus wasn’t telling him. “You sure?” asked Alec and sat down next to Magnus, arching his brow and gave him the usual thinking face and Magnus smiled softly. “Because when my dad mentioned the dinner with your parents, you kind of… I don’t know. I could feel that something was off. You sure you’re okay and don’t wanna talk about it?” offered Alec and Magnus smiled and shook his head.

“I’m fine,” said Magnus and then groaned internally because he knew that he was again doing the same thing.  _ He was trying to unlearn the fact that he had to deal with things on his own now.  _ He didn’t have to keep things bottled up inside. Also, he was again kind of pushing Alec away and in the end he just decided to tell Alec more about himself. “Actually, I’m not really fine, I’m just… well, it’s a long story,” said Magnus in the end and Alec nodded. “You know me so well, darling, huh?” asked Magnus and smiled softly.

“Wanna talk about it?” asked Alec carefully and Magnus nodded

“Sure, why not,” said Magnus and Alec wanted to tell him that it was okay if he wasn’t in the mood, but Magnus then lifted a finger and placed it upon Alec’s lips. Just as Alec knew him well, Magnus also knew his boyfriend pretty well by then and he knew what was about to come out of his lips. “Yes, I’m sure, it’s okay, it’s not like it bothers me too much now, it’s fine, I swear,” said Magnus and Alec nodded and listened in silence. “It’s just that… I don’t really have  _ that _ , I mean the relationship that you have with your parents, it’s not all that great,” said Magnus in the end and Alec quickly held his hand.

“Oh, I’m so sorry, Magnus,” said Alec softly and Magnus gave him a little smile and shrugged it off.

“It’s fine, I kind of worked through it by now,” said Magnus and Alec cocked his head to the side. He kind of wanted to ask what happened, but at the same time, he didn't want to be too pushy. 

“Would it be too straightforward of me to ask what happened?” asked Alec, again, carefully and Magnus shook his head again.

“Not at all, I’ve been meaning to tell you about it eventually anyway,” said Magnus and puffed his cheeks. “My parents got divorced when I was a kid. I don’t remember how old I was exactly, but I was old enough to have memories of it and it wasn’t really… it was a hard time for me because I didn’t understand why my mom and dad couldn’t just stay together for the sake of me. Now, of course, I know that it’s best to get divorced if things don’t work out… obviously,” said Magnsu and laughed as he meant him and Camille and he then shrugged at the time. “After they split I stayed with my dad.”

“Oh,” said Alec and bit his lip, scooting a bit closer to Magnus and the other gave him a little smile and then took in a deep breath.

“It was because my mom travelled a lot. She still does,” said Magnus and Alec just nodded. But, still, that- “You see, she’s a singer and back then her career was just taking off, so they made an agreement with my dad that it was the best for me to stay with him,” said Magnus. Alec’s eyes widened -  _ Magnus’ mother was a singer?!  _ He knew that that wasn’t the point, but still he had no idea and his eyes widened.

“Your mom is a singer?” Alec piped up and Magnus nodded.

“Yeah,” said Magnus and smiled. He was proud of his mom’s career, he really was. “She’s not one of those really famous ones, but still… she’s more recognised over in Asia,” said Magnus and Alec nodded. “Then I couldn’t understand why I couldn’t go with her, but now I get it,” said Magnus and laughed. “It was  _ supposed _ to be a more of a stable home for me,” said Magnus and Alec’s heart broke a little bit.

“But it wasn’t?”

“Sadly, no,” said Magnus and then chewed on his lower lip and then shook his head. “He remarried a few years after the divorce and… I don’t know, I always had a feeling that I was a bother,” said Magnus and then sighed sadly. He had a strained relationship with Asmodeus for sure and he just chewed on his lower lip. “I can’t say that he’s a bad father, because he’s amazing with my two half sisters,” said Magnus and Alec’s jaw dropped.  _ Magnus had sisters?!  _ He had no idea! Magnus smiled sadly when he saw the look of confusion on Alec’s face and he sighed. “I’m sorry I didn’t mention them before, I just-” he said, his voice trailing off and Alec quickly shook his head.

“No, no, you don’t need to excuse yourself, it’s perfectly fine, it’s okay,” said Alec and Magnus smiled sadly, nodding. “You don’t have to tell me more, it’s-”

“I want to,” said Magnus and Alec huffed.  _ Okay. He just didn’t want to make Magnus uncomfortable.  _ “I need to get it off my chest,” he said because he had a feeling that if he wasn’t going to tell him now then he wasn’t ever going to be ready. “I don’t really like talking about it, so I just needed to tell it to you all,” said Magnus and then puffed his cheeks. “If I think of it too much that sparks all of the usual  _ why wasn’t I good enough?  _ debate,” said Magnus and Alec quickly shook his head. No, he shouldn’t think like that! “I mean why them and not me?” asked Magnus, his voice kind of raising in volume and puffed his cheeks a little bit. “He never forgot their birthday, while he forgot mine more than on one occasion,” said Magnus, speaking fast. “And why was he always there for their recitals, but when I got a very important thing with my drama department at high school, he didn’t show up?” continued Magnus his little monologue, talking fast and his breathing was uneven. “Huh, apparently I’m not completely fine with it after all,” said Magnus and laughed bitterly.

“Oh, Magnus, I’m so sorry,” said Alec and held Magnus’ face. “You deserved more, it wasn’t fair of your father to just-”

“Abandon me for his new family?” asked Magnus and shrugged. “You know he didn’t even show up to my wedding?” asked Magnus and Alec’s eyes widened. “My mom came, she never forgets my birthdays even if she isn’t always there, she never forgets. Though, I can’t lie that my relationship with my mom isn’t kind of… well, she reached out to me a few years ago and we’re patching things up,” said Magnus and pressed his lips together. Alec was glad that he was on good terms with his mother, but his father sounded just- “Yep. So that was why I reacted like this when your dad asked about inviting my parents to the next dinner,” said Magnus and glanced down. “I’m sorry for ruining the evening, though, I know it was supposed to be all happy and stuff, but I just-”

“Thank you for telling me,” said Alec because he appreciated Magnus opening up to him - he knew that it was hard on Magnus to do that so he appreciated it. And what he had just told him made so much sense. “I’m sorry, but if I ever meet your dad, I will… tell him a piece of my mind, he shouldn’t have treated you like this, he took you for granted and I will not stand for it. Nope, I will just go over to him and say:  _ well, Mister Bane  _ \- I don’t know his name, but I don’t care - and then I will tell him that-” he started his rant, but Magnus grabbed his face and just pressed their lips together. Alec’s eyes widened and he then took in a deep breath as they pulled back. “Magnus?” asked Alec.

Magnus smiled and shook his head. He felt better now that he got to tell Alec more, opening up to him was amazing. He was always there to listen. Always. “I just love you so much and I’m so freaking lucky to have met you, Alexander,” said Magnus and Alec just beamed back at him, kissing him again and then he pulled him in for a hug. A tight and long hug it was. 


	24. Chapter 24

Magnus was nervously looking at his phone and was contemplating about the whole thing - he was about to call his father and invite him to the dinner with the Lightwoods, but he didn’t know if that was such a good idea because he knew that deep down inside he was setting up himself for yet another failure. Texting would be easier, he could handle being rejected like that easier, but he needed the confirmation immediately. He didn’t want to be waiting for a text back from his father because he knew how his father was. It took him days to reply to a simple text and he just puffed his cheeks and then shook his head. But he wanted to do this. He wanted to call his dad and ask him about things, it’s been forever since the two of them had actually spoken to each other and going over to Alec’s place a couple of days prior made him want to reconnect with his dad again and give him another chance. Maybe that time it was going to be different.

_ But he knew that he needed to keep his expectations realistic.  _

Also he made a promise to Lightwoods and he wanted to at least try. They were so nice to him and Magnus would love for all of them to hang out together. Biting into his lip, Magnus leaned back in his chair and was still just glancing at his father’s name among his contacts. His foot was nervously tapping against the floor, but in the end he just took in a deep breath and pressed call. Just what would be the worst thing that could happened? He was going to get rejected, that was all. Rejection was something that Magnus was very well used to and it didn’t really hurt him anymore because he knew where he stood. It was just a real shame for his father because he didn’t get to be a part of his life. 

The phone was ringing and Magnus just tried to keep himself calm and at one point he didn’t even think that his father wasn’t going to pick up. Maybe he even hoped that his old man wasn’t going to pick up - he’d have an excuse for not being able to get in contact with him.  _ Yet at the same time he was desperate to hear his voice.  _ It was really a frustrating feeling and he didn’t like it too much, but then his father ended up picking up the phone call after all and Magnus’ heart leaped up to his throat and he quickly straightened himself up, clearing his throat and he grabbed on his phone tight, putting on a little smile and he then nodded to himself again.

Yes, okay, he wanted to go into this very optimistic. He didn’t really want to start arguing with his father immediately like per usual and he just pushed all of the bad thoughts and memories away, feeling his heart flutter a little bit. He knew for a fact that he was being too optimistic and too hopeful. His dad didn’t even know about Alec yet. Of course he wasn’t going to agree to a dinner with a bunch of strangers (even if they were important and close people to Magnus, to him it didn’t really matter). “Dad?” finally piped up Magnus and he heard his father taking in a deep breath in on the other side of the phone call and he flinched. Was he bothered? Was he bothering him by calling? There it was… again that insecurity that he was working on, but at times like this it was proving itself to be impossible to go away. Maybe it was time for Magnus to finally accept that some of them were always going to be present in his life, no matter how much he hated it.

“ _ Magnus?” _ asked Asmodeus and he sounded quite surprised to hear his son calling him. That made Magnus a little bit nervous and he swallowed thickly. Why was he asking it like this? He wasn’t sure that it was him? Did that mean that he didn’t have his number saved up among his contacts? Because Magnus answered calls like this when he wasn’t sure who was calling him and he swallowed thickly. He was doing that again - thinking too much and he quickly forced himself to stop it. He put on a brave face and just nodded even though he was completely alone in the room.

“Yep, it’s me, dad,” said Magnus and then laughed nervously. “It’s, um, it’s been a while, hasn’t it?” asked Magnus and then waited for quite a long time for his father to say something back in response and he didn’t like it. He didn’t like it when his father was being so quiet. They hadn’t spoken to each other in months, couldn’t he be at least a little bit happy to hear from him?! Seriously?! Magnus bit into his lip and then tried not to get the nerves get the best of him. Then finally, finally, Asmodeus finally spoke up and Magnus felt a bit better. But just a little bit.

“ _ Magnus, hi, yes… I guess it’s been a while, _ ” said Asmodeus, but then there was silence again and one could just see how bad and alienated their relationship was. Magnus then took in a deep breath and was about to say something, but the other interrupted him. “ _ So, how have you been… things are okay? _ ” he asked, but Magnus could read right through it - that translated as his father asking him why was he bothering him or if he needed some money from him - which he never asked his dad for. But still, he could hear that there was a sign of annoyance behind his dad’s voice and Magnus’ lips twitched again, but he managed to keep himself under control.

“Yes, um, things have been fine, actually,” said Magnus and then hummed. “I mean I feel like I’m finally happy after a long time,” said Magnus and then made another pause. His father was just listening and it annoyed him.  _ Why was it always just him that was putting in all the hard work?!  _ “And how are you?” finally managed to ask Magnus because that was going to be the only way that he was going to get any response from his father and he then cleared his throat.

“ _ Yeah, yeah, all is okay, _ ” said Asmodeus and then made another pause. “ _ I don’t mean to be rude, but why are you calling, Magnus? It’s not like you to call me… ever, _ ” said Asmodeus finally and Magnus felt his mood cracking again and he was beginning to get pissed. “ _ I’m kind of busy so make it fast, okay? _ ” asked Asmodeus and Magnus puffed his cheeks and then he laughed bitterly.

“Busy, busy, you’re always busy,” said Magnus under his breath.

“ _ What was that? _ ”

“Nothing,” mumbled Magnus and then put on a brave face again, trying not to let that bother him too much. He expected it to happen, his father trying to get done with the phone call, so Magnus just shook his head and then gulped. “Well, like I’ve said before, it’s been forever since I’ve heard from you and it’s been a while since we last seen each other,” said Magnus and Asmodeus hummed.

“ _ Yeah for your birthday, was it? _ ”

“No, it was your birthday, actually. I remembered about it and came to surprise you at work, but you got all pissed off,” quickly blurted Magnus out and then bit his lip. Yep, it was hard not to say too much and keep things uplifting given their past and he just laughed and then shook his head. But it was disappointed - his father didn’t even remember when his birthday was? Or when they last seen each other? How could have he forgotten after that embarrassing instance. He had completely- “Not that it matters,” said Magnus and then smiled again, but it was really hard to. They really needed to sit down and have a talk about it all, but his father would never agree to do that.

But it was the only way that would get their relationship functional again. It was barely ever functional, but still… didn’t his father wish for the same thing? Ugh. So annoying. He was never like this when it came to precious daughters. Magnus didn’t want to sound too jealous, but he was envious and he never understood why he made such a difference between them. They were all his children and just-

“ _ So, your reason for calling me was to tell me that you haven’t seen me in a long time? _ ” asked Asmodeus and Magnus was even more pissed off. Just how could his father be this stupid?! He wasn’t stupid, he was just playing to be stupid because it was easier to pretend that it wasn’t his fault. He was always like this. Magnus just gulped the bitter taste in his mouth and he just shuddered.

“Not exactly,” said Magnus and then smiled softly because his thoughts wandered over to Alec - he truly was his sacred haven. “I’ve actually met someone,” said Magnus in the end and then waited for his father to say something.

“ _ That’s good, _ ” said Asmodeus finally. “ _ Congratulations, son. _ ”

Magnus smiled because that almost sounded like a praise and Magnus was going to take it. He didn’t care for it, it made him happy and he felt more confident. “Yes. His name is Alec and,” said Magnus, speaking fast because he was very excited. “And he’s very special to me, dad. We’ve been together for a few months now and I can really see myself staying with him forever,” said Magnus and smiled. “He’s nice and kind and… just really special to me. And because of that I would like you to meet him,” said Magnus and he couldn’t tell if his father was annoyed or not. He was being silent again. “I’ve already met his folks, so maybe we could all meet up for a dinner or-”

“ _ Hold your horses, Magnus. Take it slow, _ ” said Asmodeus and Magnus nodded, biting into his lip in order to keep himself quiet. “ _ So, you’ve met someone and now you want me to meet this boyfriend? _ ” asked Asmodeus. That wasn’t the first time that Magnus wanted to bring someone home. He brought home quite a lot of people in the past, but in never worked out and Asmodeus was just- “ _ Do you think that’s wise, son? _ ”

“Sure, I can’t see why it wouldn’t be,” said Magnus and was getting defensive about it. 

“ _ You sure he’s not just another guy that will eventually toss you aside? _ ”

Great job, really great way of wording it all. The award for the father of the year should definitely be Asmodeus’. Magnus bit his lip and he was getting really impatient. Just as he expected, it was turning out horribly. “Alexander is special, what we have is-”

“ _ Oh, please… spare me, they were all special and- _ ”

“Alexander is different,” said Magnus quickly. 

“ _ Son, be realistic, please. I mean- _ ”

”Why can’t you be supportive of me once?” asked Magnus and Asmodeus scoffed.

“ _ It’s not about that, you’re setting yourself for another heartbreak. Don’t come crying to me later because I’ve warned- _ ”

“Shut up,” said Magnus quickly and his father quickly stopped talking. Magnus laughed then bitterly and shook his head, taking in a deep breath and then scoffed. “I really don’t know what I’ve expected,” said Magnus and then took in a deep breath. “Why do you always have to say such hurtful things to me, dad? Here I thought… wanted us to get along. I’ve never been good enough for you, don’t know why, I’m pretty fucking great, but you… you always… never, you have never appreciated me,” said Magnus and then bit his lip. He never really spoke to his father like this or told him what he truly thought about him, but it was just… it was slowly piling up.

Magnus was again proven that he shouldn’t have gotten his hopes up. His father was always there to just… walk all over for him. “ _ Magnus, I never- _ ”

“Spare me, I really don’t want more of your excuses, Asmodeus,” said Magnus in the end. He couldn’t address to him as his  _ dad _ at the time. It was hard, he was working through it for years, but now it was just too much. The time that he spent with Lightwoods truly made him believe that maybe he and dad could also turn a new leaf. He didn’t even know why, but it was stupid and he just dryly laughed again. “You know what? Forget it,” said Magnus. “It was stupid for me to call you. Expecting that you’d actually want to be a part of my life. Yeah, right,” said Magnus. “It’s fine, I don’t need you.”

“ _ I didn’t mean it like that. I just don’t want you to get hurt again, that’s all. It’s not like that, I do want to be a part of your life. I’m your father for God’s sake, Magnus, of course I want to be a part of my life. I am trying really hard here, _ ” said Asmodeus and for the first time Magnus could tell that he actually meant what he was saying. And even if he did, Magnus didn’t really care. At least not at that time.

“Try harder,” was all that Magnus said, then cancelled the call and turned his phone off.

* * *

“I finally got response from Luke Garroway,” said Alec happily because he was very excited about the email and the first thing that he wanted was to tell Magnus all about it because he was one of the reasons that he agreed to apply at the firm. And Underhill also got an email! Alec was literally buzzing as he was sitting there next to Magnus, who was pissed off as hell about what had happened with his father just a few hours ago and he was trying his best to keep his mind off of it, his smile widening a little bit because that was amazing news indeed! He was very proud of Alec and the steps that he was taking to make his career take off again and he knew that it couldn’t be easy.

“That’s amazing,” said Magnus softly and then bit his lip. “Um, what did they say?” asked Magnus and Alec rubbed his palms together.

“Hear this - they invited me and Underhill to an interview next week,” said Alec proudly and Magnus smiled widely again, nodding. “Oh, I’m so nervous, I kind of forgot how job interviews got. I got a little bit rusty, I need to practice a little bit more. I need to make a good impression because I’m desperate. I really need a job, yes,” said Alec because it was time and he took in a deep breath. “I need to get ready!”

“I’m so proud of you, Alexander,” said Magnus, trying to put as much energy and excitement into his voice and he then pressed his lips together. “Don’t worry too much about it, you’ll be amazing out there. I bet that Luke will hire you as soon as he sees you,” said Magnus and winked. Alec nodded and then sighed happily. 

“I sure hope so,” said Alec and then just leaned over to Magnus and kissed him softly. But Magnus didn’t reply to the kiss and that was an immediate giveaway that something was wrong again and Alec pouted cutely and then cocked his head to the side. Magnus arched a brow, but he knew that Alec probably figured out that something was off… didn’t he? He always knew when something was wrong, but Magnus really didn’t have the energy to deal with it then. “Aw, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing, darling,” said Magnus. 

“No, no, there is. You didn’t kiss me back and I know that when you don’t kiss me back eagerly that something is up,” said Alec, trying to act cute on purpose to make Magnus smile. It was working, kind of. Magnus just chuckled and then shook his head. Alexander was always so adorable. “You’ve been listening to my rambling about my new job… I mean hopefully I get it, so come on, now lean on me,” said Alec. “It’s how it works, we listen to each other. We work together and grow together as a couple, we will be a pretty flower,” said Alec and Magnus snorted.

“That’s quite… poetic,” said Magnus and Alec nodded.

“Yep, read it on the Internet,” said Alec proudly and Magnus chuckled. “What happened? You seem pissed off,” said Alec and Magnus nodded and then puffed his cheeks.

“Oh, I’m very pissed off, Alexander. So, very, very pissed off, but I really am not in the mood to go too deep into it. Is that okay?” asked Magnus and Alec quickly nodded. Of course, it was okay. He just needed some space and Alec was more than happy to give him some if that was what he needed and wanted. “I just really feel like punching something or someone, preferably,” said Magnus and Alec huffed and then kissed Magnus’ temple. 

“I volunteer,” said Alec seriously and Magnus’ jaw dropped

“I’m not gonna punch you, Alexander,” said Magnus and started laughing. Alec rolled his eyes and shook his head. He then took a pillow into his hand that was resting on the couch and then placed it it front of Magnus’ face. Magnus chuckled because he had a better idea what Alec had in mind before.

“Of course not punch me, Magnus,” said Alec and then just shook his head, but was still laughing loudly and the way that Alec was laughing it also made Magnus laugh because Alexander was beyond adorable. Magnus bit his lip and then cocked his head to the side. “Punch this pillow. Do it, it’ll make you feel better, you’ll see,” said Alec and nodded. Magnus hummed and then crossed his arms on top of his chest.

“The pillow’s innocent, Alexander, I can’t punch it.”

“But what if it isn’t, Magnus? What if it is an evil one?” asked Alec and Magnus started laughing even harder. Alexander really was the best - he always knew what to say or do to make him feel better and he just shook his head and Alec pouted. “Come on, it’ll make you feel better. I know you don’t like aggression, but sometimes it’s very much needed,” suggested Alec and Magnus bit his lip.

“Yeah, that could be true, but it’s such an adorable pillow,” said Magnus.

“Punch it, Magnus. Imagine that it wears the face of whoever pissed you off,” said Alec and Magnus’ eyes fell upon the pillow. Funny enough, all of the folds that were on the pillow suddenly formed into Asmodeus’ face and Magnus ‘eyes widened because somehow… there wasn’t a pillow anymore, but his father glancing back at him and his eyes darkened. Alec knew that look and he held the pillow together a little bit. Magnus bit his lip and then formed a fist with his hand and slammed right in the middle of the pillow. Hard. 

Magnus took in a deep breath and he felt…  _ better.  _ A lot better. “Man, that felt good,” said Magnus, feeling euphoria spreading throughout his body and he then grinned. “Kinda wanna do it again,” said Magnus in the end and Alec just started laughing because Magnus was indeed too adorable and he just nodded.

“Hit it harder then,” said Alec and Magnus punched the pillow again. “Again, harder, go on, Magnus,” urged him Alec and Magnus spent a good five minutes punching the hell out of that pillow until he got it all out of his system and then he took in a deep breath, his heart racing, but he felt amazing. And definitely not pissed off anymore. “Feeling better?” asked Alec and Magnus nodded.

“Fuck, yeah,” said Magnus and Alec smiled. “You’re the best after all and you’re gonna kill it at the job interview next week. You’ll see,” said Magnus and then climbed into Alec’s lap, both of them giggling as Magnus pressed their foreheads together. 

_ Asmodeus was all forgotten.  _

Magnus was happy as he claimed Alec’s lips once more. 


	25. Chapter 25

iUnderhill stepped outside of Luke Garroway’s office and he looked serious and quiet. Alec bit his lip and then clasped his hands together - his friend looked scared as hell! Alec pressed his lips together and then rubbed the back of his neck; maybe it wasn’t going to be as easy as he imagined after all! It’s been a week later and he and Underhill were both called up to come to the interview about around the same hour and they weren’t the only ones waiting in there at all. There were quite a lot of people and it was pretty clear to Alec that he was going to really need to impress the other one. Ugh, he wished that he would know how to make a good first impression on people! Magnus was much better at that and he just huffed under his breath. Not all people were there for the same position, but still… it wasn’t going to be easy, he was very aware of that. Alec then glanced over to the side, where Underhill’s boyfriend was sitting and he smiled.

Marcel was there for emotional support and Alec’s smile grew a little bit. Ah, he was a little bit envious, he wished that Magnus would come with him as well, but the other had work, so of course he couldn’t come with him. Marcel took time off only to accompany Underhill and it made Alec smile, biting into his lip because Underhill slowly made his way over to them and Marcel was quick on his legs, wrapping his arms around his boyfriend because he looked like he needed it. ‘’Oh, my poor Teddy, was it so scary? Is he scary?’’ asked Marcel softly and cupped Underhill’s face.

Alec felt his heart fasten up and he hoped that Underhill wasn’t going to nod. Luckily for him, Underhill shook his head and finally smiled. ‘’Oh, no, he’s amazing,’’ said Underhill quietly and placed a kiss upon his boyfriend’s lips and Alec could see that Marcel calmed down. Marcel was more nervous than him when they were waiting for Underhill to come out of Garroway’s office and he just snorted. ‘’I think it went well,’’ said Underhill and then decided to sit back down and wait around until it would be Alec’s turn - he was going to wait until his friend would be done with the interview. 

‘’Oh, as expected, you’re amazing,’’ said Marcel and sat back down next to Underhill and held his hand, taking in a deep breath. Alec could see a faint flush dusting over Underhill’s cheeks and he snorted. His friend then looked over at Alec and Alec quickly took in a deep breath and cleared his throat. Oh, he hoped that he was going to tell him something important - how to make a good impression on Luke, but Underhill really wasn’t saying much and he bit his lip.

‘’No need to worry, Alec, you’ll do good. He’s really nothing like Imogen,’’ said Underhill and Alec took in a deep breath and then nodded, clasping his hands together.  _ Oh, that was amazing. But nobody could be as horrible as Imogen really was.  _ Also, there were so many people in there waiting for the interview - it was never this busy at their old company and Alec just rubbed his palms together. ‘’He just asked me a few standard questions, read through my resume and told me that they’ll call me in a matter of a week,’’ said Underhill and shrugged. ‘’Fingers crossed,’’ said Underhill. ‘’Just don’t-’’ he started, but then Luke’s secretary stepped out through the door and announced that the next person could already come in for an interview - it was Alec’s turn and Alec just froze up, but quickly pulled himself together.

‘’Pray for me,’’ whispered Alec.

‘’You’ll do amazing,’’ said Marcel happily. ‘’You’ll see!’’

‘’Yeah, don’t worry, really, it’ll be fine,’’ said Underhill, winking. Alec nervously laughed, nodded and then finally forced himself to stand up and walk inside of the office. Alec didn’t even know why he was so nervous, but he was. It was hard being an adult at times and he just puffed his cheeks and then waited with Luke’s assistant until she told him that it was okay for him to go over to his (hopefully) future boss. 

Alec was pretty aware that he was probably as pale as a ghost and he just put on a smile, which he hoped that didn’t seem forced because he needed Luke to believe that he wasn’t forcing it. It was all going to be okay. Yep, all was going to be okay, he was just worrying far too much over nothing, Alec was pretty well aware of that. Biting into his lip, Alec stepped through the second door and finally saw Garroway sitting behind his desk, patiently waiting for him to step inside of the office and he just took in a deep breath. ‘’Good afternoon, sir,’’ said Alec quickly, putting on his brightest happy face that he could think of and he didn’t hesitate anymore. He stepped over to Luke and shook his hand. ‘’Um, Alec Lightwood and I’m very happy to be here,’’ said Alec, still standing up and Luke gave him a little smile and then nodded.

‘’Do take a seat, Lightwood,’’ said Luke after their handshake and Alec quickly sat down and immediately stopped talking. Did… was that a sign that he was pushing it too much? But a handshake was an act of kindness, right? Also it was polite way to greet someone and he just glanced down, pressing his lips together and he tried not to worry too much, but his leg was nervously shaking under the table and since he was quite tall, his knee was tapping against the underside of the table and he cursed under his breath.

‘’Shit, I’m sorry,’’ said Alec and quickly pressed his lips together.  _ He swore!  _ ‘’I-I mean, excuse me, I’m, um, kinda nervous,’’ said Alec, clearing his throat. Oh, he already fucked up all of his chances of ever working here, huh? Alec just glanced down and he heard Luke chuckling and he quickly glanced up and cocked his head to the side. Luke didn’t seem bothered by the curse word that had just slipped through his lips. Garroway just waved it off and placed hands together on top of the desk.

‘’Completely understandable. Job interviews are never fun,’’ said Luke and Alec didn’t know if he should nod or not. He agreed, but- ‘’Trust me, they’re not fun for me either, so,’’ said Luke. ‘’Just sit back and relax a little bit, no need to be so nervous,’’ said Luke and Alec finally smiled a little bit. Oh, others were right about Luke! He was nothing like Imogen and he was nice! 

‘’Thank you,’’ said Alec and Luke nodded.

Luke then picked up some papers and Alec only assumed that it was his resume. Alec nervously smiled and then took in a deep breath. ‘’So,’’ said Luke and Alec nodded. ‘’Tell me a little bit about yourself, Alec, and your previous work experiences,’’ said Luke and Alec nodded again. That was a question that he kind of assumed that he was going to get and he cleared his throat. He rehearsed it well in his mind before coming here and he just took in a deep breath and then finally decided to speak up. 

‘’I like to consider myself as a hard-working person,’’ said Alec and Luke nodded. ‘’I mean I always make sure to get things done before the deadline and at my previous work place I was known as a very reliable person,’’ said Alec and then glanced down.  _ Yeah, not only reliable, but also the only one that was capable of getting any work done.  _ ‘’Before coming here, I worked for Imogen Herondale,’’ he said. Even though he wasn’t really proud of it, the woman was still pretty respected and he watched Luke’s facial expressions changing up a little bit.

There was a little twinkle in his eyes and he glanced back down at the resume and nodded. ‘’That I see, yes,’’ said Luke and Alec nodded. ‘’How come you’re not working there anymore, what happened?’’ asked Luke and Alec just bit his lip and then took in a deep breath.  _ Oh, boy, he was asking some really…  _ well, very expected questions, but it was going to be very hard to lie to the man. Still, he needed to be professional.

‘’Conflict of interests,’’ said Alec professionally. ‘’I value my time that I spent working there, sir, working for Imogen Herondale was very… I gained a lot of experiences there,’’ said Alec. ‘’I wanted to try out something else, though, I…’’ he started, it was hard to keep on going when he was lying his ass off so much. Luke nodded, cleared his throat and Alec could tell that Luke was holding back his laughter.

‘’I see,’’ said Luke.

‘’Yes,’’ said Alec. ‘’They were very interesting four years, truly I have gotten a lot of experiences working there. For example-’’

‘’Always having to do all the work?’’ asked Luke.

‘’Exactly,’’ said Alec and then his eyes widened when he realised what he just said. Biting into his lip, he quickly shook his head. ‘’I didn’t mean it like that, I just-’’ he said, trying to explain himself a little better, but then he stopped, his voice trailing off and he narrowed his eyes -  _ how did he know that though?  _ Alec glanced up at Luke, who had a little smile on his lips. 

‘’I used to work for the woman,’’ said Luke and Alec’s jaw dropped. ‘’Granted that it was a long time ago, but,’’ said Luke, twirling a pen in his fingers and then he placed it back onto the desk. ‘’I know how it was to work for her back in the day and from what I’ve heard, she didn’t really change much,’’ said Luke and then crossed his legs. Alec sighed out in relief - oh, Luke totally got it! ‘’Though it’s a very admirable thing that you’re doing, covering up for her,’’ said Luke and then nodded, humming and he picked up the resume again. Alec perked up and smiled - did that mean that he was going to have better chances in getting hired? Oh, he hoped that it meant that!

‘’Just trying to be professional, sir,’’ muttered Alec and didn’t say more than that.

‘’Good, good, I respect that,’’ said Luke and smiled. ‘’Just wanted you to know that my work policy is completely different. I try to make this a safe space for my employees as much as it’s possible, so just letting you know that you don’t have to be all that tensed up,’’ said Luke and Alec nervously laughed. Oh, so he could see it just how nervous he was. Alec quickly nodded, shaking his arms a little as he tried to loosen up a little bit. 

‘’Okay, yes, I’ll do that,’’ said Alec and nodded.

‘’Very well,’’ said Luke and Alec glanced up at him. ‘’Now, I’ll just ask you a few more questions and then we’ll be done,’’ said Luke and Alec quickly nodded again, prepared to answer to all of them and by the end of the interview he got the feeling that he did pretty well. At least judging by how Luke was acting towards him and he just hoped that he got the position. Just like Underhill, he was also being told that they were going to call him in within a week and tell him about if he got the position on their company or not. 

Alec didn’t want to jinx it, but he got a good feeling about it, he just hoped that his feeling wasn’t wrong. But then again, even if he wasn’t getting the job, he was just going to apply at another place. It was okay - the main thing was that he tried. He was getting back out there and was searching for a job. That was all that mattered and he was incredibly proud of himself. That… and he was very grateful to Magnus because he had a feeling that without him he wouldn’t be able to take such a big leap of faith. 

* * *

‘’Magnus, would you stop checking your phone all the time?’’ asked Ragnor as he was with his friend in his office. Ragnor was trying to ask his friend (who was his boss at the same time) about an opinion on the wedding that he was going to be planning, but Magnus was too occupied with checking on his texts all the time. Ragnor knew that Magnus’ boyfriend had a big job interview that day, but he really needed his  _ boss _ at the same time and he puffed his cheeks, a pout spreading across his lips and he then shook his head. ‘’Maybe I’ll go ask someone else,’’ said Ragnor and Magnus quickly shook his head, locking the screen of his phone and he quickly stuffed it inside of a drawer.

‘’No, no, don’t go, Ragnor. I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m just really worried about Alexander and his job interview, but this isn’t a good excuse, I know,’’ said Magnus and Ragnor crossed his arms and nodded in the end. ‘’Like you said… what seems to be the problem?’’ asked Magnus and Ragnor took in a deep breath and he just shook his head. He had explained it to him two times already but Magnus wasn’t listening to him at all. Still, he didn’t hold it against him. Magnus seemed to be kind of spacing out again lately, so maybe something was wrong again. 

‘’You know… it’s fine,’’ said Ragnor in the end and smiled.

‘’No, tell me, I wanna help. I’d be a terrible boss and friend if I don’t help you out. So, come on,’’ said Magnus and Ragnor bit his lip and then explained it to him again, slowly and laid it out all simply to him - he couldn’t get the venue that the couple he was working for currently no matter how hard he tried. He tried telling it to them for  _ who _ he was working, but it didn’t seem to work. And pushing the wedding back was of course out of option, so he really didn’t know what to do.

‘’So, I thought that maybe you could give them a call,’’ said Ragnor because he knew how much of influence Magnus had on people and Magnus just smiled, nodding.

‘’Oh, of course, Ragnor, that’s the least I can do,’’ said Magnus and Ragnor happily smiled. ‘’Don’t you worry, I have you all covered. In the end they’ll be eating out of my palm, that I can promise you,’’ said Magnus and winked. Ragnor chuckled and then he just gave him a little nod and thumbs up. ‘’Ugh, Alexander should have called me by now, right?’’ asked Magnus and then glanced at Ragnor, who was just smiling. ‘’I’m doing it again, ugh,’’ said Magnus because he knew that he was talking too much about Alec’s job interview.

‘’Alec’s a smart guy, I’m pretty sure that he did a good job,’’ said Ragnor and winked.

‘’Yes, that he is,’’ said Magnus and beamed. ‘’My smart cookie.’’

‘’For sure,’’ said Ragnor and winked. “So, there, you have nothing to worry about,” said Ragnor and gave Magnus a little wink. The other nodded and then bit his lip, contemplating if he should tell Ragnor what else was on his mind, but in the end he decided to tell him that he has spoken to his father. 

“Yeah, that’s not the only reason why I’ve been feeling kind of off lately,” said Magnus and Ragnor cocked his head to the side. “I’ve, um,” said Magnus and then made a little pause, but then just took in a deep breath and stopped stalled. “I’ve spoken to my father recently,” said Magnus and Ragnor’s eyes widened. He knew all about Magnus’ old man, they didn’t talk about him a lot because the man didn’t deserve their time and effort. He really didn’t. Ragnor bit on his lip and tried not to get too pissed off. 

“What was is this time?” snapped Ragnor and held in his breath. “What does he need?”

“I called him,” said Magnus and sadly huffed under his breath. “At the dinner with the Lightwoods… they asked me if we should all have a dinner together. My folks too. They didn’t know about my situation at home, I didn’t tell Alexander about it until now, so, it’s okay, but,” said Magnus and shook his head. “All those happy feels at the family dinner made me think that maybe it could actually be possible I was ready to give my dad another chance and all of that, but-”

‘’Didn’t go well?’’ asked Ragnor.

‘’You have no idea,’’ said Magnus and just shook his head, rolling his eyes. ‘’It’s like I’m invisible to him, but well,’’ said Magnus and then waved it off. ‘’For a change I didn’t let him just walk all over me like he used to do, I finally told him what I think of him and he sounded shocked, almost,’’ said Magnus and then shook his head. ‘’I didn’t know what he expected to hear from me, seriously, but well,’’ said Magnus and Ragnor pressed his lips together. Suddenly he was very pissed off as well - Magnus was always so kind and gave people more chances that they deserved. 

‘’That’s good,’’ said Ragnor and grumbled under his breath. ‘’Because it was finally the time that he got what was coming to him,’’ said Ragnor and Magnus gave him a sad smile and just shrugged.

‘’I just wanted my father to be there for me once,’’ said Magnus and bit his lip. ‘’But, well, we can’t have what we wish for, it’s not like how real life works,’’ said Magnus and then shook his head, shaking all of those bad feelings away, because he was honestly over it. That little pillow punching session helped. That and also that he finally told his father his true feelings. That also meant a lot to him. 

Ragnor wanted to say something, but then the phone rang and Magnus quickly clapped and quickly grabbed for his phone because he just knew that it was Alexander. Finally, he waited for such a long time and as he picked up the phone call, Ragnor bit his lip and then took in a deep breath. Magnus was going to get that dinner with his father.  _ Ragnor was going to make sure that it happened.  _ And he just knew who he was going to ask for help.

Ragnor was sick and tired seeing Asmodeus yo-yo his son like this. Giving him the tiniest amount of love, just enough to keep Magnus around and wishing that he was a part of his life. He had seen it happen over and over again. But it was going to change. 

* * *

Magnus met up with Alec a couple of hours later - he was having drinks with his friends, Underhill and his boyfriend, Marcel. Magnus had met Underhill before and the two of them were getting along pretty well and he was very excited to also finally meet his boyfriend. He had heard a lot about him, so this was going to be the perfect chance to do that. But more importantly - he wanted to hear all about how the job interview went. He had heard a little bit about it before over the phone call with Alexander, but he wanted to hear all about it in person. Apparently things went pretty well and he was so proud of his boyfriend.

Magnus located the trio pretty much as soon as he stepped inside of the cafe and he happily waved across the room, Alec spotting his boyfriend pretty much immediately because how could he not? Everyone noticed Magnus when he stepped into the room and he waved back to his boyfriend, who smiled and quickly made his way over to them, Underhill happily smiling as well. There was a face that was yet unfamiliar to Magnus, but he was soon going to get to know the other one a lot better. 

“Magnus, you’re finally here,” cheered Alec happily and Magnus grinned, kissing his boyfriend as soon as he was close enough and Alec happily humming into their kiss. “I’ve missed you, I have so much to tell you, Magnus, oh, today was very full of events,” said Alec and Magnus chuckled and nodded.

“Indeed,” said Magnus and then glanced over at the table and saw the other couple waving at them. “That’s Marcel, right?” asked Magnus and Alec happily nodded.

“Yes, oh, I’m so happy and excited that the two of you will finally meet,” said Alec and then placed his hands together. “He came with Theo to be his emotional support,” said Alec and chuckled softly. 

“Oh, I should have come with you, you were all lonely and-” started Magnus, but Alec quickly quieted him down with a kiss and he just shook his head.

“I’m a big boy,” said Alec and waggled his eyebrows. “Went all alone and made you proud,” said Alec and Magnus just started laughing. “Go on, let’s go to the other two,” said Alec and Magnus quickly nodding, allowing Alec to take his hand and take him over to the table. Magnus was so very excited to meet up with Underhill again and to finally meet the boyfriend, in flesh and after they all got seated and finally ordered something to drink, the job interview finally came up - what else could they really talk about? 

“So, how did it go?” asked Magnus, talking to Underhill and Alec. “Is Luke Garroway really as amazing as they say?” asked Magnus and the other two glanced at each other and nodded in unison.

“He’s so cool,” said Alec quickly.

“Yeah very nice and kind, nothing like Imogen,” said Underhill.

“And hot,” chimed Marcel in and all the other three glanced at him. Marcel innocently shrugged it off - he had seen Luke on the hallway when they were leaving as he stepped out of the office and he happened to notice. “What? You were both thinking it,” said Marcel again very innocently and Magnus just started laughing and Underhill just shook his head.

“I mean he’s easy on the eyes,” said Underhill and Alec chuckled. True, true.

“The most important thing is that he’s much better than Imogen. Did you know that he used to work for her?” asked Alec and Magnus’ eyes widened.  _ Really?  _ What were the chances? Underhill also appeared surprised. “Oh, yes. He asked me how it was working for Imogen and then asked me if I also did all of the work around,” said Alec and started laughing. Magnus chuckled and then shook his head.

“Seems like you’ve already have things in common,” said Magnus.

“Yeah, like, just what are the odds?” asked Alec and Underhill snorted.

“The world is really small,” said Underhill. “Ugh, I just really wish I get that job. I mean that we both do,” he said and Marcel just booped his nose.

“Aw, Teddy, of course you will. You’re amazing and strong and so smart,” said Marcel and Magnus was cracking up. He liked Marcel so far, he was quite the character. Magnus nodded.

“Our boyfriends are the best, aren’t they?” asked Magnus and Marcel quickly nodded. “They will both get that job, you’ll see,” he said and then glanced at Alec. “You’re the best out there, Luke will be happy to have both of you working for him,” he said and Marcel grinned all the way up to his ears.

“Couldn’t have said it better myself,” said Marcel and Alec snorted.

“Don’t we just have the best boyfriends, Theo?” asked Alec and to answer that question Underhill just nodded. Magnus rolled his eyes - it was so cheesy, yet he couldn’t escape the flush forming upon his cheeks. 


	26. Chapter 26

“They still didn’t call back,” moaned Alec out and Magnus gave him a little compassionate look and placed his hand upon him and gave him a little squeeze. Alec bit his lip and then shook his head, taking in a deep breath. Well, of course, it still wasn’t the  _ next _ week, so technically he would still have to wait, but he was really nervous about it and impatient. Magnus waved it off, trying to ease Alexander’s mind a little bit. He could see that it was on his mind for the past few weeks and Magnus just puffed his cheeks and shook it off, trying to make Alec feel a little bit better.

“Alexander, you’ll get the call on Monday, I am pretty sure,” said Magnus. “You know that these things take time. Also they told you to wait until the next week, right?” asked Magnus and Alec just gave him a little nod and then took in a deep breath. Yeah, the other had a good point, Alec knew all that and he just tried to shake it off a little bit. They were waiting for Izzy to come as they were going to be hanging out - she and Simon were coming to the restaurant. It was going to be a nice double date and he didn’t want them to only talk about that. The only thing that he was able to talk about lately was himself and the job - he didn’t even try asking Magnus if things were okay. Magnus didn’t tell him what happened the last time that made him so pissed off and Alec didn’t want to push it, but still… he wondered. 

“I know, I know, you’re right,” said Alec and gave him a little soft smile, leaning in and he pressed their lips together. Magnus gave him a little wink and then nodded. “I’m sorry, ugh,” said Alec and Magnus cocked his head to the side. “I, um, I mean about how all I talk about lately is this stupid job thing,” said Alec and pouted. “It has to be pretty boring annoying, right?” asked Alec and Magnus quickly shook his head.

“Not at all,” said Magnus and gently pressed a kiss upon Alec’s nose. “I know how much this means to you. Also finding a new job is a stressful thing and you just need a little bit support. You’ve been there for me so many times before, so let me take care of you for once,” said Magnus, winking and Alec just waved it off. He liked taking care of Magnus so much and he just took in a deep breath and rubbed his palms together. 

“Yeah,” said Alec and clicked with his tongue. “You’re okay?” asked Alec and Magnus nodded happily. He was feeling perfectly okay. “Good. Just checking. You were really pissed off the other day - remember the day that you had that punching pillow session?” asked Alec with a little smile and Magnus just nodded again, but waved it off. That was all in the past - he was really okay. He managed to pull himself together enough and he decided that he really shouldn’t put that much worries on himself again. It was a burden and it wasn’t on him this time.  _ He tried really hard to reconnect with his father, but if he didn’t want to try, then what was even the point?  _ Magnus bit his lip and puffed his cheeks.

“Yeah, was really pissed off that day at my dad,” said Magnus and Alec’s eyes widened. It was about his father? Oh, Magnus didn’t mention it at all and Alec felt his stomach dropping because Magnus was dealing with that all on his own? Oh, he wished that Magnus would have something! But then again, he did say that he didn't’ really want to talk about it at the moment and Alec just bit his lip. “It’s all in the past, Alexander, I’m fine now that’s all that matters,” said Magnus and Alec bit his lip, still not feeling too well about it.

“Wanna tell me what happened?” asked Alec and Magnus shrugged again.

“Not much,” said Magnus and leaned back in his chair. “Remember how your parents invited mine over so that we could all have that dinner?” asked Magnus and Alec nodded, trying to tell him know that he had already told his parents that the dinner was going to happen, but not soon. He didn’t tell them too much about it; he mentioned that Magnus had complicated relationship with his dad, that was all. “Well, I’ve been thinking about it and spending time with your family just made me feel all warm inside,” said Magnus. “It made me wanna reconnect with my dad and introduce you to him because you’re very special to me and a big part of my life at this point, so,” said Magnus and gave Alec a little smile.

Alec smiled back at him and linked their fingers together. Judging by how pissed off he was that day, he kind of figured that it didn’t go well. “It didn’t go well?” asked Alec and Magnus just shook his head and glanced up at Alexander, looking back down and then just dwelled on it a little bit.

“I ended up calling him,” said Magnus. “But, yeah, it didn’t really end well,” said Magnus and made another pause. “I told him all about you - how great you are and how amazing you are to me. That you’re very different from all of the other people I’ve dated so far, but he just dismissed it all,” said Magnus. “Told me to spare myself another break up,” said Magnus. “And this pissed me off because he just assumed that you were like the others, how fucking dares he,” said Magnus and Alec’s eyes darkened.

“Oh, Magnus, I’m so sorry, I-”

“But, it’s okay, truly,” said Magnus, shaking his head. “I just kind of snapped because after he insulted you like this I kind of snapped and it all came up and I finally let him know what I truly think of him,” said Magnus and rolled his eyes. “Like I know that he wants good for me, he did tell me that he cares about me and that he doesn’t want to see me get heartbroken again, but he just,” he said and just shrugged. “I don’t know, I don’t know why it’s so hard for him to talk to me normally like he does to my half sisters. I really don’t get it,” said Magnus and clasped his hands together.

Alec needed a little while to calm down, taking in a deep breath. He was glad that Magnus finally got the chance to tell the man what was on his mind, but Alec also wanted to meet this man and tell him some things. There were so many things that Alec wanted to tell him and he just huffed under his breath and rubbed his palms together. He was going to find a way because it was just getting too much at this point - he had no right to speak to his son like this.  _ And yet there was Magnus that told him that all of this was coming from a good place.  _ Magnus was just so… too kind. He truly was, too kind for this world and other people just took advantage of that. But Alec wasn’t going to stand for it anymore as he was truly pissed off. 

Alec didn’t want to cause the scene. Not only because his sister and her boyfriend were coming, but he also didn’t want to talk about it too much with Magnus because he didn’t want to cause him more heartbreak. “So, um, your father,” said Alec and Magnus just nodded and cocked his head to the side a little bit. “Where’s he from?” asked Alec and Magnus grinned and arched his brow - why did his boyfriend need to know that? Still, he didn’t think too much of it.

“New York,” said Magnus.

_ Oh, New York, it was going to be much easier to find him!  _ “Good to know. What’s his name?” asked Alec and Magnus was getting more suspicious about this - just what was on Alec’s mind?

“Asmodeus,” said Magnus slowly. “Why do you need to-” he started, but before he was able to finish his sentence, Isabelle and Simon finally joined them and Magnus forgot about it pretty much immediately as he really didn’t want this to ruin their double date. But, Alec, on the other hand, didn’t let it go. He remembered that name, engraved it into his mind and he was going to find this Asmodeus guy on his own. He was going to find him and make him appreciate his son. 

* * *

“Alec,” whined Max and Alec only hummed, but didn’t really look up from his laptop and the boy whined and started sliding down the couch. Alec again picked Max up from school that day - he was still waiting for a response from Luke Garroway. But he managed to find a way that filled his free time so that he didn’t keep on worrying about getting feedback from the company. He was… researching. He wasn’t too proud of what he was doing, but he needed to find out more about this Asmodeus, so that was what he was doing for the past day - he was trying to figure out more about Asmodeus Bane! “Alec, stop staring at that computer and pay attention to me,” whined Max again and Alec just glanced up. Finally.

“Oh, yes, be right there with you,” said Alec as he typed  _ Asmodeus Bane _ into the search bar on Facebook and then narrowed his eyes. Maybe he should have asked Magnus how he looked like, huh? Then again it wasn’t like the name of Asmodeus was very common among people. It was quite specific. But he did find a few profiles and two of them didn’t have any pictures on their profiles. Okay, so Alec needed to narrow it down. Two of them had an image and he leaned closer to the screen and decided to check all of the people with the same name.

First one was from Texas. Nope, next.

Arizona. 

“No, not this one either,” said Alec and clicked back, rubbing the back of his neck. Max arched his eyebrow - just what in the world was his brother up to? Since the two of them came over to Alec's place, his brother was on that laptop and something told the boy that Alec was there before he came to pick him up as well. Really weird. Alec always took him out somewhere, so the boy knew that his brother was up to something. As curious as he was, Max inched closer to Alec, who quickly tried to cover up the screen of his computer and Max whined again.

"What are you doing?"

Alec bit his lip.  _ Stalking Magnus' father on social media didn't sound like an appropriate answer he should give to his little brother.  _ Alec cleared his throat and then hummed. He wasn't really proud of he was doing either but he  _ needed  _ to talk to the man, somehow. Well, or just make him see how amazing Magnus was! "Researching," said Alec in the end and nodded. Yeah, that sounded like a good excuse. He could always be researching something and it technically wasn't a lie. He was researching!

"Oh, awesome, what are you researching?" asked Max and Alec pressed his lips together. That he didn't know how to answer, he was kind of hoping that Max would drop it after that. He usually did, but he was really bored at the time and Alec didn't say anything, so that was why Max decided to see it for himself and he leaned closer to the screen and his eyes widened when he saw what was there: Alec had opened up so many tabs and in all of them was the name Asmodeus Bane written -  _ who was that? _ Well. Probably a relative of Magnus! But why was Alec- "Who's Asmodeus?" asked Max and Alec flushed.

Fuck.

"Magnus' dad," said Alec in the end because there was no point in lying anymore. Max wasn't a kid anymore, he knew what was going on and Max' jaw dropped because he soon figured out what Alec was doing! Max couldn't believe it! But also… Why?

"You're stalking Magnus' dad on the Internet?" asked Max quickly. Alec rolled his eyes and he shook his head. He didn't like how that sounded. He wasn't stalking, he just…

"I wasn't stalking him," said Alec and rolled his eyes. Max snorted because his brother was a terrible liar.

"Then what would you call this?"

"I was just researching, like I told you," said Alec and Max started laughing. "I was gathering information about him," he said and realised how it sounded. "Researching requires a person to seek out information-"

"On a very creepy way," said Max and Alec rolled his eyes. "It's stalking," said Max and Alec pressed his lips together. "By definition-"

"Stalking is illegal and this isn't. All information is public," said Alec and then cleared his throat, clicking on another person and  _ yes. This Asmodeus was from New York. And he had a picture so now Alec knew how he looked like and-  _ okay, yes, it was kind of creepy. "Technically," said Alec and clicked on the  _ about  _ button so that he could read more about him. It was hard looking for him - Magnus didn't have him among his friends! But he found him. "Found him," said Alec as he read through the information.

"So, not stalking, huh?" teased Max.

"Pssh," said Alec and then glanced at the screen. "Yes, lives in New York," said Alec as he read through the profile and saw some of the photos. There he was with his two daughters - teenagers. Alec bit his lip and rubbed his palms together. 

Now what?

It felt wrong.

"Ugh."

“Can I ask why you were… researching Magnus’ dad?” asked Max and Alec bit his lip.

“Well,” said Alec and then rubbed the back of his neck. “I was about to reach out to him and make him appreciate Magnus more,” said Alec and then bit his lip. But now that he actually managed to find Asmodeus’ social media account, he wasn’t as sure about it anyway. It felt wrong because it was none of his business. Yes, he loved Magnus so much, but that was between him and his father. He shouldn’t say anything and he just shook his head. “But now I realise it’s wrong,” said Alec and then just closed the browser and closed his laptop. “So annoying,” said Alec.

Max nodded because he knew about the situation a little bit. “We can create a fake profile and make him apologise to Magnus,” said Max and his eyes lit up. Alec started laughing - it was sweet how much Max also wanted to protect Magnus and in the end he just shook his head, Max deflating and he pouted. “Why not? They wouldn’t know it’s us,” said Max. “We can put a fake-”

“I know, Max, but it’s still not okay to do it,” said Alec and bit his lip. “Believe me, all I wanna do is find out where he works or lives, go there and talk some sense into him, but,” said Alec and shook his head. “It’s not a wise idea. It’s invasive. Magnus told me that he got it all sorted out and I should respect that,” said Alec. “So should you, I don’t want you to go around creating fake accounts and bother the man, okay?” asked Alec and Max nodded in the end.

“Being responsible sucks,” said Max and Alec grinned.

“Oh, boy, believe me, I get you so much,” said Alec and ruffled Max’s hair. “I’ve learned in the past that it’s best not to push things sometimes even though you really, really want to do something,” said Alec and gave Max a little smile. In the end, the other one just nodded and pressed his lips together, shaking his head. He just really didn’t like the thought of someone not liking Magnus because he was such a likeable person! Truly, truly unfair and he just pouted, but he knew that his older brother was right. 

“I know, I know,” said Max in the end and just pouted. “We had a conversation like this in school. Yeah, but still I wish I could do something,” said Max sadly and Alec just gave him a little smile.

“I know you do, I do as well. But, you know,” said Alec and Max cocked his head to the side. “The man thing is that we’re there for Magnus no matter what, we’re there to protect him. And that’s what important, right?” asked Alec and Max gave him a little nod.

“Yes, we’re Lightwoods,” said Max and Alec beamed at him. 

“That’s right,” said Alec.

“And Magnus is a Lightwood at this point as well, right?” asked Max with a small voice and Alec bit his lip a little bit, but in the end he nodded. Yes, he liked the sound of that. Magnus being a part of their family… he was slowly becoming to be a member of their family and Alec happily sighed and bit his lip.

“Yes,” said Alec in the end and Max happily beamed at him. 

Alec was smiling wider because maybe one day… it wouldn’t be just Magnus Bane… but could be Magnus Lightwood-Bane. He was getting ahead of himself a lot, he knew all of that, but he still… couldn’t stop thinking about it. He and Magnus have been together for quite a bit and the thought has been on his mind for a while now - he had known from the very start that Magnus was the one.

Magnus Bane was the one.

Alec sighed and then just pressed his cold hands against his warm cheeks. Max arched his brow, but didn’t make a comment about it.

l


	27. Chapter 27

It was Monday. Alec was sitting in front of his phone, sweating for the entire morning as he was waiting for the call to come from Luke Garroway. He was really, really on edge, biting on his lip and was trying not to look at the phone screen every two seconds, but it was really hard to keep his hands away from it. He couldn’t even bring himself to reply back to Magnus, who had sent him quite several questions if he had heard it from the company yet. He was too nervous about it and he promised to himself that he was going to make up to Magnus by sending him ten the amount of texts that he had received, but until the call was coming, he wasn’t getting away from the couch. He was just sitting there, feeling completely numb, yet he was terrified at the same time and he gulped.

Alec had just gotten from the phone call with Underhill and he also didn’t hear it from them yet, so that was probably a good sign. He didn’t know, he really didn’t know. The chances of both of them being hired at the same company were quite slim even if they weren’t applying for the same position. Alec was going to be pretty devastated if they both weren’t getting the job, but he tried not to think of that too much yet. He didn’t want to get too pessimistic from the very start and he glanced at his phone again, unlocking it again and his heart jumped when he saw that he had another new message from Magnus and he bit his lip. Maybe he should have replied to them while he was waiting. Not only that he was scared, but he was also feeling guilty for not responding back to Magnus immediately. 

**Magnus:** Alexander, don’t you worry too much. This morning you were so scared before I left for work. It’s completely okay, it’ll be all okay. I can’t wait for you to call me and tell me that you got the job. I just know that you will get the position, because nobody is more amazing than you for it. You’re truly amazing and if Luke doesn’t hire you, he will be missing out on having such an amazing employee. I believe in you. <3

**Magnus:** And even if you don’t get the position, it’s completely okay, I mean it. It’s completely okay. The main thing is that you tried and not succeeding the first time around just means trying again. I know it, it’ll be all okay :) Don’t worry too much, I can feel your worries all the way to my office. You shouldn’t be so worried, it’s completely okay.

**Magnus:** Maybe I should have stayed home with you today. Oh, gosh, now I feel like such a bad boyfriend. Maybe I should return back home to be with you? Ugh, but there’s this important meeting that will be going on and we have an important client coming in, but I’m not really needed. I have competent people working for me, so I’ll come to you. Okay? I feel like you need me there.

**Magnus:** You’re not replying back to me :’-(

**Magnus:** Alexander, speak to me. Say something. You’re making me nervous as well now!

**Magnus:** Oh, baby, do you feel too nervous to even bring yourself to reply back to me? I feel like that it is the fact and now I am really coming back to you. I will make an emergency meeting here and tell my people that they will have to handle things without me. They’re all adults, they don’t need me to babysit me! I’ll put Ragnor in charge, I know I can trust him. He’s the best of them all. And I’ll be on my way to you <3 

Alec chuckled, but realised that he needed to reply back to Magnus immediately because he didn’t want Magnus to cancel his meeting because of his job interview. It wouldn’t be a good idea, especially given how important the whole thing was. Because Alec was in a hurry, he quickly called Magnus instead of texting to him and he prayed that Magnus was going to pick up fast. Luckily for him, Magnus picked up almost immediately and he could hear that Magnus was pretty nervous as well. “Alexander, finally, tell me what happened?” asked Magnus, thinking that he already got the call from Garroway and Alec just smiled as he gripped on his phone.

Magnus was in his office, all ready to call up the meeting when he got the call from Alexander. He was ready to drop everything and go be with his boyfriend! He didn’t say anything anymore because he wanted Alec to tell him what happened and Alec just bit his lip. “I, um,” said Alec and then shook his head. “I still didn’t get a call from them,” said Alec and his smile started tugging at his lips. Just hearing Magnus on the other side of the phone call made him smile and he was already in a much better mood. Maybe this was all that he needed? To hear Magnus’ voice. Though they’ve seen each other. Magnus was over at his place before he headed over to work and he then took in a deep breath.

“Oh, still nothing,” said Magnus and bit his lip. “Why the call?”

“To tell you that you don’t need to cancel your important meeting with that important client,” said Alec and chuckled softly. “I got this, I can handle it on my own. I’m a big boy, remember? I mean I’m scared as hell, but at the same time, it’s okay, I swear,” said Alec and Magnus hummed on the other side of the phone call and he shook his head - he wasn’t so sure in that. He would much rather come over to Alec and spend time with him. 

“Are you sure? You were so pale this morning, are you sure-”

“Magnus, I’m fine, I’m feeling much better now that I got to hear your voice,” said Alec softly and then took in a deep breath. Magnus felt a little bit better now that he heard that from Alec and he just softly bit into his lip, but he still wished that he could see Alec, or at least- “I’ll come over when you’re done with work, okay?” asked Alec and Magnus immediately nodded because that was going to be amazing. Now that he thought about it, the two of them were spending quite a lot of time at each other’s place. If Magnus wasn’t with Alec at his apartment, Alec was hanging out with him at his loft - they truly did spend all of their free time with each other and he bit his lip.

“Okay, that sounds amazing and-” he started, but then he heard Alec taking in a deep breath on the other side of the phone call. That was because while Magnus was talking, Alec’s phone started buzzing and as he saw it he saw that he had another phone call incoming and he quickly cleared his throat because that phone number was the number of Luke Garroway and his heart jumped up to his throat.

“Magnus, they’re calling me now,” said Alec quickly and Magnus’ jaw dropped.

“Oh, gosh, right. Yes, good luck, call me when you’re done, okay?” asked Magnus and quickly said his goodbyes with his boyfriend. Alec nodded and then sank his teeth into his lower lip as he quickly picked up the phone call.  _ Oh, he was going to need all of the good luck that he was going to get.  _ Yep, because he really felt like passing out and at the same time he was just… okay, yes, everything was going to be okay. He took in a deep breath and then put on his  _ big boy _ voice. Well, he just wanted Luke to think that he was a proper adult, so he swallowed back his fears and just decided to face them straight on.

“Hello,” said Alec quickly and then bit his lip. “Um, this is Alexander Lightwood,” he said politely and then waited for the other one to say something. The next few seconds seemed to drag out for minutes and then the voice on the other side finally spoke up. It was Luke himself and Alec was quite surprised. Usually he expected the secretary to call about the job - if someone got it or not. At least that was what he was used to previously, but the fact that Luke himself called seemed a little bit more personal. It showed that he truly cared, huh? It was a really good surprise and Alec just hoped that he was bringing good news.

“Hello, yes, Luke Garroway speaking,” said the man on the other side of the phone call and Alec felt his heart fluttering a little bit more and he bit into his lower lip.  _ Oh, he hoped that it was going to be good news.  _ He wanted to be celebrating with Magnus later that day and not be needing consolation. “I’m calling you regarding the job interview that we had the previous week,” said Luke and Alec nodded even though he was alone in the room.

“Yes, of course,” said Alec quickly and was just crossing his fingers at that point and then he swallowed thickly. “Um, so,” said Alec because the other was taking his time to say something and Alec really didn’t like it - he just wanted to know. The whole week was dragging out for far too long and he just needed some answers. “When can I start working?” blurted out Alec, saying it kind of in a joke and because he was trying to lighten up the mood a little bit. He didn’t like it how it was all serious and how much his heart was beating. He needed to make himself laugh.

Alec heard Luke laughing on the other side of the phone call and then he sighed. “You really do like getting straight to the point,” said Luke and Alec froze - that wasn’t a good thing? “I value that too,” said Luke and then made a little pause. “Well, I was calling you to tell you that I’m more than happy to announce that you’re on our team,” said Luke and Alec’s jaw dropped because he was real? This was for real - he got the job? Truly?! “I was thinking that you can start next week, to settle in a little bit, you can come here tomorrow so that I can introduce you to things and people,” said Luke and then chuckled. “I like the enthusiasm,” he carried on. “If you would prefer-”

“Shut up, I got the job?!” blurted Alec out, saying it completely impolite. It sort of just slipped out and he quickly bit his lip and was horrified.  _ Did he really just tell his new boss to shut up?!  _ Alec was shaking and he was scrambling together words to get a good apology and in the end he huffed in relief because Luke started laughing and he held in his breath. Nope, he wasn’t going to say anything anymore, because he was being completely rude. How dared he?! “I am so sorry, I didn’t mean-”

“Yes, you got the job,” said Luke in the end when he finally stopped laughing. “Oh, you will fit right in among the others,” said Luke in the end and then smiled. “So, yes, you can come tomorrow and we can slowly start,” said Luke in the end and Alec quickly nodded and took in a deep breath. Okay, he needed to apologise (again) and then thank the man… three times. One, for taking him in, two, for being so cool about things and three, for not making a big deal about him telling him to shut up. Oh, he also needed to thank him for giving him such an amazing opportunity to start working and-

“I would just like to thank you for such an amazing opportunity,” said Alec quickly and took in a deep breath. “I really look forward to working at your company, sir, I’ll really bring my best to the table. I will work hard and I also want to, again, apologise for before because that was so rude and inappropriate of me. I want to let you know that I am usually very polite, I respect my superiors, I never-” he started, but then Luke started laughing again and Alec bit his lip. Okay, now what? Maybe he overdid it? Oh, that was probably it. Now Luke was going to think that he was a total pushover! Oh, that wasn’t good!

“Imogen truly broke you,” said Luke and Alec’s jaw dropped.

“I’m… I’m sorry?” asked Alec carefully, but he kind of got what Luke meant - it was all that apologising, wasn’t it? Yeah, she truly did break him. The amount of times that he had to apologise for something that he didn’t do was truly astonishing and he was just… trying not to do that anymore, but at the same time it was hard to unlearn it. He spent four years of listening to the woman telling him that he didn’t know how to do his job properly and had to listen how he was just-

“What I’m trying to tell you - it’s fine,” said Luke. “You didn’t disrespect me in any shape or for, okay?” asked Luke and Alec just nodded. It was true, that kind of came out because he was so excited. “So, see you tomorrow,” said Luke and Alec nodded, grabbing his phone again tightly and he just took in a deep breath and smiled widely.

“Yes,” said Alec. “And thank you so much. Again. For giving me such an amazing opportunity, sir,” said Alec and Luke smiled again.

“Drop the sir, Alec, call me Luke, it’s fine. I don’t like all the formalities anyway,” said Luke and Alec was shook. His new boss was so cool and totally unlike Imogen - he truly was just as amazing as the others said.

“Yes, of course. Understood,” said Alec.

“Well then, until tomorrow,” said Luke and Alec nodded, saying his goodbyes and then he ended the phone call. As the phone call ended he stuffed his face into the pillow and let out a happy sigh.  _ Did that really happen?  _ Did he really get a job on his first try! Oh, that was so amazing. 

_ Did Underhill get it too?  _

_ Also he needed to tell Magnus about his new job! _

_ Also he needed to tell so many other people! _

Oh, he had so much to do!

* * *

“Mom, dad, I told you that you didn’t have to do so much,” said Alec and his cheeks were red as a tomato. Of course that as soon as his parents heard the good news about his getting the job that they had to do something that was so over the top and they decided to throw a party. It was a small party - besides the Lightwoods, only Magnus was invited to it. Underhill and Marcel were on the guest list too, but the couple was busy celebrating on their own because Underhill also got the job and they went on a romantic dinner to celebrate. Sadly they couldn’t show up to the Lightwood household. 

“Of course we had to,” said Maryse and pinched her son’s cheeks. “You got a new job, we have to celebrate,” she said and Alec just smiled and then nodded, happily hugging his mom and then glanced back at Magnus, who was just shining with pride - Alec got that job just like he predicted and he was so happy for him. And he was so happy to be invited to this party. Lightwoods really did… support their children so much.

“That’s what I said,” said Magnus. “You should celebrate big, Alexander, you finally got a good job. And your boss is cool,” he said, winking. “So this should be all about you,” said Magnus and pressed a kiss upon Alec’s cheek, who flushed even more and then cleared his throat.

“I-I know,” said Alec and then looked around the room. They really went all out - again.

“You’re dating a smart man, my boy,” said Robert happily and then rubbed his palms together. “How about we all have some Champagne. I got a very expensive one,” he said and Alec was again feeling kind of awkward about it because he didn’t really achieve much. But then again he did and he just… he really didn’t know what to do with himself when he was in the centre of attention.

“That would be lovely,” said Izzy happily and Magnus glanced over at Robert to see what kind of Champagne he got and he whistled.

“You have good taste, Robert,” said Magnus and Robert waved it off.

“Izzy helped me pick out,” he said and Izzy happily grinned over at the side. Yep, the two of them went shopping before. 

“Ah,” said Magnus and grinned.

“Yeah, it’s thank to me that dad keeps up with trends these days,” said Izzy and Robert rolled his eyes.

“I’m not  _ that _ old,” said Robert and the two of them bickered a little bit, but in a very loving fashion and Magnus smiled, but his heart also filled with sorrow. He wished that his father could be like this. Just laughing and bickering with him about some unimportant things. Biting into his lip, Magnus snapped back to reality as Alec walked over to him and handed him his glass of Champagne.

“Thank you,” said Magnus softly.

“Mmm, you’re welcome,” said Alec softly and placed a kiss upon Magnus’ lips. “Thank you for coming here with me,” said Alec and Magnus grinned.

“Well, thank you for inviting me?”

“Always,” said Alec and wrapped an arm around Magnus’ waist and pulled him a bit closer. “Feeling okay?” asked Alec, just checking. Even if the party (and the day) was about him, he still didn’t want Magnus to feel left out and Magnus just nodded.

“I’m okay,” said Magnus. “I’m so proud of you, Alexander,” said Magnus and then kissed Alec again. “And so happy for you. I’m glad you got this job. It’ll be amazing for you,” said Magnus, carrying on and Alec just nodded.

“Thank you for being so supportive, again… I wouldn’t be able to do it without you,” said Alec and Magnus beamed up at him. “I love you so much,” said Alec and Magnus hummed, nodding and then he kissed him again.

“Love you too,” said Magnus and was about to kiss Alec again, but then their little moment was interrupted by Jace, who wanted them all to take a group photo. Both of them just rolled their eyes, but a group photo did sound pretty great though. It was really fun to be over at the Lightwoods’, Magnus was enjoying his time there very much indeed. His heart did feel a little bit heavy as he watched Robert and Alec chatting and happily laughing around and he needed a little bit of space, so he stepped at the side, but he was still wearing a bright smile on his face, puffing his cheeks.

It wasn’t until a few moments later that he was approached by Robert himself. “How are you holding up, Magnus?” asked Robert and Magnus was caught a bit off guard as he wasn’t really sure what the man was asking him. “Alec mentioned your situation about your father,” said Robert slowly and Magnus glanced at him and then nodded. Yeah, he knew about that, Alec asked him if it was okay for him to tell his parents about it before he actually told them and he just shrugged,

“It’s fine,” said Magnus.

“I would just like to apologise about the dinner - Maryse and I didn’t know, we didn’t want to make you feel uncomfortable or stir up some bad memories of the past,” said Robert and Magnus smiled and shrugged.

“I know, I really am okay for most parts,” said Magnus and then bit his lip.

“You sure? Why not join us in the living room?”

Magnus swallowed and glanced at his glass of wine and shrugged. “I don’t know, I guess I didn’t want to be interrupting,” said Magnus. “I mean you’re all a family and I’m just… you don’t know me for a long time and-”

“Maryse and I consider your a part of the family,” said Robert quickly and Magnus cleared his throat and just glanced down. Lightwoods really made him feel wanted and welcomed and he didn’t know how to handle it. It was a feeling that made his heart want to burst with  _ happiness.  _

“Thank you. That really, um, means a lot,” said Magnus and his voice was shaking just a little bit. As a father, Robert could see all that Magnus was craving for was… having a proper father. And that saddened the man; he really couldn’t understand it. He didn’t want to stir things up too much, but he just-

“You know, if you ever need help with anything,” said Robert and Magnus glanced at him. “You can always come to me,” said Robert. Magnus hadn’t heard him speak like this so far and what those words translated for him was  _ if you ever need a father, you now where to find me.  _ That… Magnus took in a deep breath, glanced up and then back down. Tears were welling up in his tears because Robert really didn’t say much, but that just went to show how much Magnus wanted to be  _ first.  _ At least for once. 

And when it came to Lightwoods, he always felt special and appreciated.

Lightwoods made him feel like he was number one. 

Never was a second choice.

“Magnus?” asked Robert, kind of startled by that reaction and Magnus smiled.

“All’s fine, I’m just… that really means a lot to me, so thank you,” said Magnus and Robert nodded.

“There’s really no need to thank me,” said Robert and tapped Magnus’ shoulder. Magnus puffed his cheeks and cleared his throat. “Now, how about we go back to others, huh?” asked Robert and Magnus nodded but he could feel that the man realised how much this truly meant to him and he just… he loved being a part of the Lightwood family. They were the best. 


	28. Chapter 28

“Fuck, you’re feeling so tight around me, Alexander,” moaned out Magnus, rolling his hips and Alec threw his head back and he laughed breathlessly, nodding along and then he bit his lip. Alec’s arms were wrapped around Magnus’ back, pulling him closer and as Magnus sunk deeper inside of him, Alec sank his nails into Magnus’ skin and the other hissed and smiled in delight. He loved it, it showed that Alexander was feeling good, that he was losing control and losing control was something that he wanted to see, picking up the pace a little bit and Alec rolled his head to the side and moaned softly, reaching down with his hand to cup his neglected and throbbing cock.

“Oh, fuck,” said Alec, giggling in between his moans and he started jerking himself off slowly, matching it up with Magnus’ thrusts and he just smiled out in delight, biting into his lip and he glanced up at Magnus, whose eyes were locked with Alec’s. “You can move faster, come on, give it to me nice and hard, you know know how much I like it when we-” he started, but then Magnus did just that, lifting his legs higher and Alec’s voice trailed off because Magnus changed up the angle a little bit and hit the spot dead on, his toes curling and he arched his back. “F-finally, right there,” moaned out Alec and Magnus grinned a little bit.

Magnus leaned closer to Alec, cupping his face and slowed down a little bit. Alec nuzzled into the touch and he moaned softly as he felt Magnus capturing his lower lip in between his own, kissing him softly and he hummed into their kiss, biting into Magnus’ lower one, gently sucking on it and he enjoyed the little gasp that he earned from Magnus. He kind of wanted to hear more, kissing him deeply again and Magnus was trying his best to keep up with Alexander’s fast and eager kisses.  _ Someone really was in a desperate need of some good fucking…  _ love making. That was what both of them liked to call it and he just smiled softly.

As much as Alec liked Magnus kissing him so softly, he also wanted Magnus to let go of that self-control that he was still grasping and just fuck him into oblivion. They’ve been going at it for quite a while, Magnus really did drag out that foreplay and Alexander loved it, of course he did. But he was also needing something faster and rougher and he whined because Magnus slowly rolled his hips again, but it wasn’t enough. He needed to feel him deeper again, much deeper. He needed to feel Magnus’ dick splitting him in half, gosh he loved it when he sunk inside of him right to the brim and Magnus could see the expression that Alec was making, grinning.

“Not enough, is it?” asked Magnus with a little devious smirk and Alec whined again because that meant that Magnus was doing it on purpose. Alec pouted and Magnus just leaned down to kiss the pout away. “Want me to go faster again?” he asked and Alec gave him a look of disbelief - did he really just ask him that? Alec bit his lip and quickly nodded because he couldn’t hold out much longer - he felt like bursting at that point. His dick was throbbing in his fist and he whined again.

“I-I swear to God, if you don’t fuck me properly, I’ll turn us around and fuck myself properly,” complained Alec and Magnus just laughed because patience really wasn’t Alexander’s virtue - at least not in that sense. But then again, he couldn’t keep himself back from just going to town and pounding into Alexander as he pleased and he just took in a deep breath and kissed Alec again, but the pout was still there. Ah, yes, acting cute wasn’t going to help Magnus this time was it? It was good that he knew just how to make his boyfriend forgive him for all of his sins. 

Alec was about to complain again, but Magnus finally decided to him and before he knew it, he was again reduced into incoherent moans, little begs and pleads, pleading Magnus to keep on going and he couldn’t handle it much longer, being pushed over the edge as Magnus gently sucked onto the sensitive spot just under his ear, shaking in Magnus’ arms as he felt him pulling out, Magnus gently wrapping him in his arms, stroking his back as he waited for Alec to come back down to Earth and Alec was just smiling, glancing up at the ceiling as Magnus slowly rolled down off of him.

“Phew, that was good,” said Alec and then hummed, looking over at Magnus and he pouted, but was also horrified - Magnus still didn’t reach his end! He wanted to take care of him, but Magnus just slipped down the condom, wrapping his hand around the base of his cock and just stroked his hand up and down a few times and he was coming all over his hand and stomach, Alec quickly going to him to kiss him tenderly and then hummed happily as they both of them started giggling because  _ now _ they were both satisfied, feeling lazy - far too lazy to ever leave the bed that day.  _ Good thing that it was weekend.  _

“Mm-hmm, very good,” said Magnus, his smile widening and Alec reached over to the drawer and got some of the tissues for both of them, cleaning Magnus up clean as well and Magnus was just cutely looking up at them. Shower was going to be needed, but a bit later. For now, they were just going to spend some time like that. Cuddling, kissing and doing completely nothing. It was going to be a very lazy Saturday and Alec just smiled and kissed Magnus’ cheek.

“Today I don’t wanna do anything, I just wanna stay here for the whole day,” announced Alec and Magnus grinned. Alec was currently over at his place, again, and he didn’t mind it at all. He loved having Alexander over and he was spending time over at his place for quite a while now. That week he only went home to grab more clothes to bring them over to Magnus’ and Magnus just smiled. It was almost as if they were living together and he liked it. No, not liked, he loved it. Coming home, knowing that he wasn’t going to be coming back to an empty apartment. 

And vice versa, really. It’s been a month since Alec started working at Luke’s company and he was coming back home at humane hours. He didn’t slave off his whole days at his office, like he was doing that with Imogen. Nope, he got to come back home even before Magnus sometimes and he liked it.  _ Going home, well, going to Magnus’ place… but it felt like coming home.  _ Biting his lip, he just snuggled closer to Magnus, who wore a bright smile on his face and he kissed Alec’s cheek.

“Just stay for the whole weekend, hmm?” offered Magnus and Alec happily nodded.

“Yes,” said Alec and then rubbed the back of his neck. “Though I’ll be needing to drop over at my place to grab some of the clothes. I’m starting to run low,” said Alec even though Magnus did his laundry as well. He needed more variety and Magnus just nodded and smiled. Alexander truly had his own special corner in his closet and it was growing and growing. He liked it. He kind of wanted to bring it up a few times before - them moving in together, but he also didn’t want to push things? “There’s still some space in your closet? If not it’s completely okay,” said Alec because he didn’t want to be butting in too much and Magnus just chuckled and placed his head on top of Alec’s chest and glanced up.

“There’s always space for you here, Alexander, always,” muttered Magnus happily and Alec bit into his lip.

There’s been something that he wanted to ask - it was about moving in together. It was on both of their minds but neither of them knew when it was the proper time to bring it up. Maybe it was now? They were kind of talking about it and Alec just wanted to come out and say it. It’s been on his mind for too long and he just- “Actually, can I ask you something?” asked Alec and Magnus glanced up again and nodded.

“Of course, what’s on your mind?”

“I’ve been kind of thinking,” said Alec and Magnus just nodded. “I mean I’ve been spending a lot of time here lately. Especially during the last month as your place is closer to my new workplace,” said Alec and Magnus nodded again, feeling his heart fasten a little bit and he perked up.  _ Oh, was Alexander going to ask it?  _ “And all of this going back and forth between here and my place takes a lot of time and it’s just annoying,” said Alec and Magnus nodded again. Oh, yes, very annoying. It would be better if he just moved in!

“Yes?”

“It might seem kind of sudden, but it’s been on y mind for quite a while now,” said Alec and felt his own heart beating a bit faster. “But what if I moved in?” he just said it out loud and Magnus’ eyes widened.  _ Oh, gosh, he did say it!  _ Magnus was so excited! “I mean I already spend all of the time here, I am kind of tired of my old place. And this one is closer to my Luke’s company, so I was just thinking that maybe I could move in,” said Alec and then bit his lip. “But, like, no pressure? I’ll understand if you need more time or-” he started, but Magnus quieted him down with a kiss quickly.

“Yes, a thousand times yes,” said Magnus very quickly and his cheeks reddened a little bit because he realised that maybe he said that a bit too excited? But, still, he was overjoyed that he and Alec were actually thinking about the same thing and he just swallowed, a little smile spreading across his lips and he then cleared his throat. “I mean,” said Magnus and Alec was just beaming down at him because he was happy that Magnus was so excited about it. “The thought has also crossed my mind and I just didn’t know how to bring it up,” said Magnus. “I would love to make this official,” said Magnus and then bit his lip. “Having you move in with me would make me so happy, Alexander,” said Magnus and Alec waggled his eyebrows. 

Alec wrapped his arms around Magnus and then spun them around - so that he was laying on top of Magnus, who was now just happily looking up at him and he kissed him hungrily. Having Magnus tell him all of that just made him so happy and he happily purred as they pulled back and he placed his forehead against Magnus’. “I can’t believe to move in with you,” said Alec and kissed Magnus again, who just happily kissed him back and wrapped his arms around him as well, pulling him down next to him and his heart filled with joy and glee.  _ It was such an amazing weekend! _

* * *

“Oh my God, Alec, that is big and I’m so happy for you,” said Izzy happily when Alec told them that he was going to be soon moving in with Magnus. He was meeting up with Izzy and Jace for their usual lunch plans at their favourite restaurant and he decided to break the news about the move in on Monday. He couldn’t really keep his mouth shut about it because he was just so freaking excited about it. The first one that he told about it was Underhill. It sort of slipped out that morning when they both came to work. And now he told his siblings about it - finally. He was really excited about it!

“Thanks,” said Alec, his cheeks glowing red, but it was because he was so happy and he cleared his throat. “I know it’s kind of sudden, but it’s been something that I’ve been wishing for a while now,” he said and then arched his brow when the saw that Izzy and Jace exchanged very meaningful looks. “What?” asked Alec and cocked his head to the side as he didn’t quite get what was there to-

“Sudden?” asked Izzy and chuckled.

“Yeah, dude, you’ve been spending all the time over at Magnus’,” said Jace and then grinned. “We all kind of expected the two of you to move in sooner than later,” he said and winked. “And we’re all so happy that you two are finally taking that step,” he said and Alec just laughed because, again, everyone was able to read through something earlier than him. Really, it was to expected? Well, of course, it was the next step in the relationship, but still, Alec wanted it to have a little bit more… drama to it when he was announcing it all. He wanted it to be a surprise!

“Well, it’s true,” said Alec and bit his lip. “Gosh, I just can’t believe it,” said Alec and shook his head. “If someone told me a year ago where I would be now - a great job, an amazing boyfriend, us moving in together - I would have never believed it,” said Alec and then bit his lip, making a little pause. “It just seems that everything is slowly falling into places, you know?” asked Alec and then clasped his hands together. “For the first time in a long time I can actually see what kind of a future is there ahead of me and I’m excited about it,” said Alec and Izzy nodded.

“I know what you mean,” said Izzy and then glanced down at the engagement ring on her finger.  _ Yeah, a lot has happened in the last month.  _ Simon proposed to Izzy and she was just glowing with happiness. 

“Right,” said Alec and smiled. “How come you haven’t asked Magnus to plan your wedding?” asked Alec curiously. She did hire someone from Magnus’ company, but it wasn’t Magnus and Izzy just shrugged.

“We did talk about it,” said Izzy, sipping on her drink and she then shrugged. “We agreed that it was for the best in the end,” she said and Alec arched a brow. “Well, you know that we’re both very stubborn people and we both are very strongly opinionated when it comes to fashion, decor and things like this,” said Izzy and Alec nodded. Ah, yes, she didn’t want her Bridezilla to jump out and have an affect on their friendship. “But he will still be very present and will help me with some things. Like picking out the wedding dress,” said Izzy and her eyes were glowing. “Literally I can’t wait till we get to that part of planning,” she said and Alec hummed in agreement. 

“Oh, I bet that’s very fun, yes,” said Alec and Izzy just grinned and nodded. “Who’s gonna be the best man this time?” asked Alec curiously and Jace slowly raised his hand up. Alec’s jaw dropped when he saw that and he just glanced at Izzy, who just snorted and then nodded again. “Seriously, he asked you?” asked Alec in disbelief.

“Why not?” asked Jace and narrowed his eyes. “Don’t you think I have it in me to be the best man?”

“Oh, it’s not that,” said Alec and then laughed. “Just given how the two of you have hit it off when you first met him,” said Alec and Jace finally understood what Alec meant by that remark and he just nodded. Yeah, they really did come a long way since then. “But that’s amazing,” said Alec and Jace nodded.

“Yeah, Simon is a lot less annoying than he was years ago,” said Jace and Izzy gave him a little playful punch. She knew that it was a joke!

“Hey, that’s my husband that you’re talking about,” she said and then her eyes lit up.  _ Simon was going to be her husband.  _ Oh, that was so exciting. Alec just smiled and then nodded. For a change, he couldn’t wait for that wedding to happen!

He really was a changed man.

* * *

* * *

Magnus was an excitable person, who loved sharing good news with others, so of course he posted about the two of them moving in together on all of his social media - he posted a photo of him and Alexander and added in the caption that they were finally moving in together. The response that he got was an overwhelming wave of support, of course. Alec was of course supportive about it and he was just smiling when he was listening to all of the supportive comments that were rolling in under the posts and he was just humming along and nodding. Alec wasn’t really that much active on social media, but he loved that Magnus was so invested in it all. It was cute. 

And Magnus truly was glowing - he was so happy to be getting all of that support, happily reading the comments as he was sitting in Alec’s lap and Alec was just grinning behind him - he could feel his grin and he chuckled himself. He was happy that Alec was so supportive about him being so active on social media and he smiled when he felt Alec’s strong arms going around his waist, his chin resting on top of Magnus’ shoulder and he pressed in a little kiss upon Magnus’ neck.

Magnus was excited about the changes that were coming. The two of them were going to have to do a little bit of shopping. They needed a few extra pieces of furniture, Magnus felt like decorating a little bit more and he was going to make sure that Alec was going to feel included in it as he did live here from now on. Though Alec was still in the process of moving, but everything was almost already set. “Have some time tomorrow?” asked Magnus and Alec perked up.

“Always, what for?” asked Alec curiously.

“Mmm, wanna do some furniture shopping,” said Magnus and Alec arched his brow - oh, he really didn’t have to go to such lengths to- “We should get a new closet, I want more space, I mean all that is able to fit is my clothes, so we need to buy a bigger one,” said Magnus and Alec chuckled. “Also, I feel like redecorating, so I’ll be buying a few extra things,” said Magnus and Alec bit his lip.

“You don’t have to do so much for me, I-”

“Alexander,” said Magnus and Alec nodded. “I want to. Come on, you’re moving in, we need to do a bit of changes,” said Magnus and winked. Alec nodded in the end and couldn’t really deny how happy that made him feel. “If you’re free tomorrow after work we can take a little trip down to the shop and see what they have,” said Magnus and his eyes lit up because he could already check online! “Oh, maybe we can shop from here, let’s see what they have in stock,” said Magnus and clasped his hands together.

“You’re adorable,” said Alec.

Magnus spent about ten minutes surfing through different types of furniture when he got a notification alert on his Facebook page, saying that he had a new comment. Since he had a lot of them, he didn’t really think of it too much and he tapped onto the notification, but when he saw from who the notification was, he froze and his eyes widened just a little bit. Alec arched a brow when he saw his boyfriend staring down at his phone instead of his computer and he wondered what was that all about.

Magnus, on the other hand, had to check if he was really reading and see correctly, because the notification was from his father and he just narrowed his eyes. His father? He was kind of nervous to see what the notification said and he cleared his throat and bit his lip. It was probably nothing much, he usually just randomly liked his posts.  _ But this was a comment.  _ Magnus tapped on it to see what the comment said. Perhaps it was just a mistake, maybe he didn’t mean to post a comment on  _ his _ post. 

That wasn’t the case.

Asmodeus’ comment said:  _ congratulations :-).  _

“Magnus?”

Magnus quickly snapped back to reality and cleared his throat. “My dad commented on the photo,” said Magnus. “The one on which I announced that we’re moving in together,” said Magnus and narrowed his eyes. What did it mean? Did it mean that his father was finally trying  _ harder?  _ Did his speech have an impact on him the last time? Though quite a lot of time passed since then, but better late than never. Magnus wasn’t really sure what to think of it all and he just puffed his cheeks. He didn’t want to get his hopes up.  _ One time of his father showing affection didn’t mean a thing.  _ It had proved out to be like this in the past, but at the same time, it was-

Alec felt his heart beating a bit faster and he bit his lip, trying not to get too worked up too soon because he still didn’t know what the comment said. But he was prepared for everything. “What does he say in the comment?” asked Alec curiously and Magnus took in a deep breath and cleared his throat again.

“He’s congratulating us,” said Magnus and then shook his head. “I don’t understand, he never really,” said Magnus and shook his head. “He rarely texts me or comments on anything,” said Magnus and bit his lip. “What does this mean? Do you think that I got to him, Alexander? The last time when I finally told him how i feel about everything that he did?” asked Magnus and Alec shrugged, but then quickly nodded. Yeah, that could be it. That better be it or he was really going to stop holding back and go over to the man himself.

“He’s just happy for us, that’s all,” said Alec, hoping that he was right.

Magnus bit his lip and then continued staring at that comment. It wasn’t just a comment, but there was a smiley face and Magnus glanced around the room, only to find himself staring back at that comment and with a shaky finger he pressed the like button. He didn’t comment back, he couldn’t bring himself to comment back to it, but he liked it and it meant a lot to him. He hoped that his father was also going to interpret that as that. 

Magnus also didn’t allow himself to get too excited about a single comment. In the past, his happiness would be off the charts, but now he was just… it made him smile, but he didn’t focus on it too much. If his father was committed, he was going to have to show it more than once. That was why he placed his phone down and clicked on the next page of the furniture shop that he was looking at before. Alec squeezed Magnus closer to himself and Magnus just smiled, placing his hand over Alec’s arm and turned around.

“I’m okay,” said Magnus. He truly was. “More than okay, Alexander, everything is perfect,” said Magnus and Alec smiled, nodding. Alec then gently cupped Magnus’ face and kissed him again. 


	29. Chapter 29

Alec, who was sitting next to Magnus in front of the laptop was feeling kind of nervous and he took in a deep breath, closed his eyes and tried not to let it show on his face too much, but Magnus could see it and he just took his hand and shook his head. He didn’t understand why his boyfriend was being so nervous about the whole thing - they were waiting for his mother to call him over on the Skype call. She was on tour, but she decided to take some time off so that Magnus could finally introduce Alexander to her. She had heard quite a lot about this new man that was in her son’s life; she heard that they moved in and that meant that it was probably very serious. She knew about her son’s difficulties in love life, but it really seemed different this time around. She didn’t really care about the previous person that Magnus was with - Camille. 

Yes, she never liked her, but because she didn’t want to appear preachy, she didn’t say anything. Magnus seemed happy with her, but she never cared for her. Even when she was invited to their wedding; she really didn’t approve of it, but because she was trying to be supportive, she didn’t really say anything. As it turned out in the end, maybe she should have said something because the woman ended up breaking her son’s heart and she still didn’t forgive her; she never was. But that was all behind them and now she was prepared to meet this new person that had come into Magnus’ life; she had seen some pictures of them online and she could see that they appeared happy. Also, Magnus told her a lot about Alexander and he truly did seem like special person, always putting her son first. 

Unlike for Asmodeus, Cintia was very interested in meeting Alec. It was kind of hard to schedule things because she was on tour and she had a lot of rehearsals and meetings, but she managed to make it work because she always wanted to put Magnus first, as much as she possibly could and Magnus understood that and appreciated it. Clearing his throat, Magnus glanced over at Alec, who was chewing on his lip and he just snorted, shaking his head because he was kind of ridiculous. “Alexander, please, calm down a little bit. Why are you being so nervous about it?” asked Magnus softly and then took in a deep breath. “My mom is pretty chill, so you should just calm down, take in a deep breath and just relax, okay?” asked Magnus and Alec arched his brow.

Yeah, that was easy for him to say. Not to mention that Magnus was also pretty nervous when they went for that dinner with his parents. But it was also different - Magnus met his parents before because they all knew each other, but Alec never met Magnus’ mother and even though he knew that she was amazing and very accepting, he was also under a lot of pressure. Not only that he needed to make a good first impression on Magnus’ mother, but he also wasn’t really used to being in the company of a celebrity. Magnus tried telling him that she wasn’t one of those big celebrities, but she had her albums, she also had music videos and she was touring; she had fans… alas, she was a celebrity after all and Alec just huffed under his breath and shook his head. Yes, he did a little bit of a Google search about her and he found her music. It was good. You could call him a fan as well and he just rubbed his palms together and then placed his cold hands against his warm cheeks.

“I’ve never spoken to a celebrity before,” said Alec and Magnus rolled his eyes and then crossed her arms on top of his chest. “You might roll your eyes all you want, but this is a lot for me and I just need to somehow find a way to calm down, yes, I need your mother to think that I’m a sane human being. I need to make a good impression,” said Alec seriously and Magnus just kissed his cheek and then shook his head. Alexander was truly putting too much pressure on himself. His mother was going to love him, he already knew it and he just bit his lip, hoping that Alec could find it within him to take it down a notch a little bit because at the moment he was really, really scared.

“Again, don’t think of my mom as a celebrity,” said Magnus. “Think of her as my mom and it’ll be okay,” said Magnus and Alec nodded. Yes, okay, he needed to somehow erase the celebrity part. “Also, she is a very down to Earth person despite all of the success that she managed to achieve, so just calm down, okay?” asked Magnus and Alec nodded again. “She’s a chill and very humble person,” said Magnus and Alec beamed at him. Oh, yes, he could see that; Magnus was also very humble despite all of his success and he just smiled and then bit his lip. He felt a little bit better, his heart wasn’t beating as fast anymore and then he just kissed Magnus softly and then took in a deep breath.

“Thanks,” said Alec and managed to form a little smile on his lips even though he was still pretty nervous. “You’re right, I need to calm down, yes, I’m so sorry,” said Alec, rambling a little bit and Magnus was just laughing softly along. Alexander was too adorable, wasn’t he? Truly. “Thank you for being so patient with me, okay, I’m ready to finally meet your mom,” said Alec, kind of convincing himself that he was finally ready, but then when Cintia actually called in, Alec completely froze up, his eyes wide and as the video finally connected, he just sat there, blinking, looking like a deer caught in the headlights. Magnus chuckled and then shook his head - yeah, Alec didn’t calm down even for a little bit. But he still smiled because he was really happy to see his mother again; it’s been a few months!

The woman on the other side of the video call was just looking over at them, her smile wide and Alec finally managed to bring his hand up and he stiffly waved. Magnus cracked up finally and then glanced over at his mom. “Mom, hi, it’s so good to finally see you again,” said Magnus, looking over at the camera and he waved as well. Cintia smiled as well, waving back to the boys. Oh, Alec finally realised where Magnus got his looks from; he totally had her smile and he just sighed happily, but didn’t allow himself to speak up just yet.  _ She was so pretty, even prettier than in all of those music video that he had seen.  _ Alec cleared his throat and the woman also finally spoke up.

“Boy, hello. Magnus, it’s really good to see you again. I’m sorry, it’s kind of my fault, I’ve been busy with the tour, it’s really… well, very hectic, but fun,” said Cintia and then clasped her hands together and kept looking at Alec, who did not dare to even move. “But I’m also very happy that the tour is finally ending and then I’ll take a longer break this time, maybe. Hopefully,” she said and Magnus nodded. “Jump over to New York so that I finally see you in person too,” said Cintia and Magnus’ heart warmed up, quickly nodding.

“This would be amazing,” said Magnus and bit his lip. “Where are you touring now, by the way?” asked Magnus as he didn’t really remember. His mother did mention, but he kind of forgot. Cintia smiled and then nodded.

“Japan now,” she said and then winked, again looking over at Alec, who was trying to bring himself to say something, but he was just too nervous to actually even move and Cintia decided to be the first one to say something. “And it’s very nice to be finally able to meet you too, Alec. Magnus had told me a lot about you and I’m really glad that you decided to join us,” said Cintia and Alec took in a deep breath and then nodded.  _ Yes, he needed to tell her how happy and glad he was that she invited him. _

“T-thank you f-for agreeing to invite me to-to meet you,” finally said Alec and Cintia chuckled.

“Are you okay, honey?” asked Cintia and Alec just nodded. Magnus snorted and her mother glanced over at him and she cocked her head to the side. “Is all okay over there?” she again asked, speaking now to her son because Alec was still just nodding and Magnus gently bump into Alec his with elbow, who finally snapped out of it and Cintia just smiled. Magnus then bit his lip and then looked over at his mom again. 

“He’s just nervous because he never met a celebrity before,” said Magnus, winking and Cintia’s jaw dropped.

“Magnus, just what did you tell the poor boy about me?” asked Cintia and then looked over at Alec, who finally snapped out of it and he was horrified - he was completely rude to the woman. She was trying to make small talk with him and start up a conversation, but all that he was doing was sitting there and just stare. Oh, this was bad, he needed to say something. Also, now she thought that Magnus told him bad things about her? “Don’t listen to my boy, he has a vivid imagination sometimes,” said Cintia quickly and Magnus was already laughing again. “Just think of me as Magnus’ mother, I’m not really… I don’t like the term celebrity to describe myself anyway,” she said and then glanced at Magnus, who was just innocently looking at his mom. 

“I said nothing, mom,” whined Magnus and Cintia arched her brow.

“Really?”

“Yes, yes, really,” said Alec quickly, finally forcing himself to finally speak up. “I just, um, saw some of your songs and videos and I’m in awe. I like-like your songs, I think they’re amazing,” said Alec and Cintia then looked at Magnus, who was just nodding along. She then smiled again and shook her head; a dork, right? Magnus did say that and she just hummed along and then waved it off. “I’m sorry, was I rude just now?” asked Alec and was panicking again. “I didn’t mean to, I was just… okay, I’ll stop talking and I will just sit here and-”

“Oh, he’s adorable, Magnus,” said Cintia and Magnus cracked up, nodding. Alec flushed into deeper shades of red and he just glanced down. Oh, Magnus told her that about him? He was flattered, but at the same time he didn’t know how to act when he was being complimented so many times and he just started fanning his face because he was feeling really hot and Magnus just snorted. Magnus then gently ruffled his hair and Cintia’s smile widened. “Aw, you two are adorable together. How long have you been together for now?” she asked and the two of them glanced at each other and both replied in unison.

“Five months,” they said - that was since the two of them had gotten together  _ officially.  _ Cintia chuckled when they both replied at the same time and Magnus carried on. “How time flies fast,” he said and happily sighed. “But we’ve known each other longer,” said Magnus, dragging his tongue over his lower lip. “I mean like I’ve already told you, I planned his brother’s wedding,” said Magnus and Cintia quickly nodded. Yes, yes, of course, he did mention it before and Alec just flushed a little bit because they’ve known each other longer, yes, but in what way? Oh, they’ve been friends with benefits for a little while and he just took in a deep breath.

“Ah, yes, you did mention that wedding, yes. Apparently both of you were sick and tired of weddings, huh?” asked Cintia and Alec nodded. “I bet you both feel different now,” she said, winking and Alec just glanced down, but there was the prettiest flush over his cheeks and Magnus just chuckled. “Well, I’m just happy you two found each other,” said Cintia and Alec slowly glanced up, nodding. Yes, he was very happy about it as well. “And Magnus mentioned how wonderful you’ve been to him,” said Cintia and Alec flushed even a bit more and then he cleared his throat, nodding. 

“I, um, well, of course. Magnus deserves happiness,” said Alec and then glanced at Magnus and his heart started beating faster. “I just want to make him happy, that’s all,” said Alec and Magnus flushed then, Alec giving him a little kiss on the cheek and then he glanced back to the screen. Cintia seemed smitten with the two of them and Alec just glanced down. “I’m so happy that I’ve met him, he makes me so happy,” said Alec and Magnus flushed even more. Oh, it was refreshing to see Magnus flushing so much, Alec quite liked it.

“I’m so happy to hear that,” said Cintia and then bit his lip. “And I’m very thankful, not just you, but… Magnus had such great things to say about your father, mother and your siblings,” said Cintia and Magnus nodded there next to Alec, sitting silently. “Thank you so much, it warms my heart up to see. Especially since my good for nothing ex-” she started, but then the door behind the woman opened and Cintia glanced around. Alec looked at Magnus, who just shrugged because he also thought that his mother was free to meet up with them via the video call, but as it turned out that the man that had just barged inside of her hotel room was her manager.

“Should we, um-” started Alec, but then quieted down as he listened to Cintia and her manager argue on the other side of the video call. 

“ _ You were scheduled a rehearsal this morning! _ ”

“ _ No, Jeff, it was all cancelled, understood? I cancelled the morning rehearsal, I want the whole noon off because I’m on the video call with my son, is that understood? I told you three times yesterday. Very patiently and kindly, but you’re really testing my nerves! _ ”

“ _ You can call them later, it’s important, this- _ ”

“ _ Oh, no, no, no I’ll stop you right here. A concert is not as important as this - I am meeting my future son in law, _ ” heard Alec say the woman over the computer and his cheeks reddened. Magnus, on the other hand, was just cracking up. Oh, he heard a lot about this manager and, yeah, he was… good at his job, but also very annoying. 

“ _ So we’re not doing this right now then, are we? _ ”

“ _ I think I’m fluent in English enough to let you to know that no, we’re not doing this right now,  _ Jeff!” she said and her voice was getting louder. Alec’s eyes widened - she was so soft spoken before, but now… oh, she really did have a powerful voice, not only when it came to singing. “ _ Now, please, get out of my room and knock the next time, don’t just barge in. It’s rude, _ ” she said and managed to get rid of her manager even though he was complaining. A lot. “Ah,” said the woman as she was back to sitting in front of the computer, fixing her hair. “Excuse me, boys, I’m back,” said Cintia. “So, where were we?” she asked and Magnus was just laughing as he saw the look on Alec’s face.

_ She really did just blow off the whole rehearsal just to meet him. _

The honour!

* * *

Alec was in an amazing mood. It was the next day- after meeting Magnus’ mother and he was in high spirits. He made sure that he told everyone about his future mother in law being the coolest celebrity that he had ever met. He told everyone at his workplace, his mom, dad, Izzy, Jace, Max… everyone knew about him meeting Magnus’ mother finally and he was just very excited. She also promised that she was going to join them for the dinner once her tour was going to be over. She was going to take a month off, at least, to spend some time in New York and Alec was looking forward to that. But he also knew that it was going to take a little while until they were going to get to that point. 

Still, he was just so happy that Magnus’ mother was so cool and she really did care about Magnus a lot. He could tell and Magnus was also very excited and happy about how the meeting went. But he also knew that his mother was going to end up loving Alexander because what was there not to like? He completely forgot about Asmodeus and the comment that he left on his post. It was bothering him for a couple of days, but he was too busy with doing other things. Alexander was moving in after all and it was very exciting time and he was occupied with other things!

Alec came home a bit later home that day and he found Magnus in the middle of the living room and he was…  _ what was he doing?  _ He was sitting on the floor in the middle of boxes upon boxes and Alec’s jaw dropped because apparently Magnus was trying to put together their new closet, but it wasn’t really working out as he wanted it to go. Alec quickly took off his jacket and hurried over to Magnus, who was sitting like the cutest pile of sadness there in the middle of all the mess and he pouted because that day didn’t really go as planned.

Magnus might have went a little bit overboard with shopping, but he couldn’t help himself. He wanted to surprise Alexander that day - he took half of the day off so that he could be home and assemble all of the new pieces of furniture on his own. It sounded easy, he was just going to have to follow the instructions that came with the furniture, but upon opening it all up he quite quickly realised that it wasn’t going to be as easy and Magnus really wasn’t a handyman when it came to things like that. But still, he wanted to surprise his boyfriend with putting together their new wardrobe. It was going to be such an amazing surprise… at least in his opinion, but after he actually pulled everything out and saw how big it all was- Yeah, he realised that he made a big mistake. 

And not only did the room look like a mess, but Magnus looked like a mess as well. His hair was all fluffed out - he kept tugging on it out of frustration before, he looked tired and he was just… he needed a shower and some food. He was really in there for hours upon hours and he managed to assemble shit. Well, there was that coffee table, but it looked so small and he just felt completely defeated and embarrassed. Humiliated by furniture, how amazing. He was just glaring at the pieces of the wardrobe - it was as if they were laughing at him. Oh, they were all evil.

“Magnus, what happened in here?” asked Alec and Magnus looked up at him and scoffed.

“”Nothing, nothing… it would be good if something happened, but nothing happened,” said Magnus and let out a very over-dramatic sigh and he just looked around. “Alexander, I’m useless, completely useless,” said Magnus and Alec’s jaw dropped.

“Who said that? I’ll hit them,” said Alec and Magnus finally cracked a smile.

“Ugh, nobody, it’s just… I feel useless,” said Magnus and then finally stood up and walked over to Alec, trying to avoid stepping on anything and breaking it, but it deserved it. Still, he paid a fortune for all of that, so it was for the best if he was careful. “I wanted to surprise you, I took a half day off, came here and wanted to put together our new wardorbe, but I was able to achieve nothing,” said Magnus and pointed to the thing that he managed to put together. It was one shelf and the back, but other than that- “And that sad thing that you can somehow call a coffee table,” said Magnus and pouted. 

“Magnus,” said Alec and placed his hands on top of Magnus’ shoulders. “You… do you know how hard it is to put together furniture, especially that thing is huge, it’s at least a two person job,” said Alec and shook his head and then smiled softly. “Oh come on, don’t pout,” he said and then kissed Magnus’ pout away. Gosh, he found it so adorable that Magnus wanted to surprise him like that. “Also, that’s the best coffee table that I’ve ever seen,” said Alec and Magnus laughed, shaking his head.

“Liar,” said Magnus.

“I never lie,” said Alec and then bit his lip. “Aw, Magnus, it’s okay, you tired so hard, you look so tired,” said Alec and kissed Magnus’ forehead. “It’s okay, I’ll help you, okay?” asked Alec and Magnus shook his head.

“No, it’s fine, I can do it. You came home just now from work, you were working so hard and-”

“I wanna help my boyfriend,” whined Alec, dragging it out and Magnus just chuckled. “I also bought us some pizza on my way home, so you should actually take a little break, you know?” asked Alec and Magnus pouted. “A little bit of pizza for both of us - you’ll recharge your batteries and we can get to the wardrobe and if we don’t finish it today, we can always continue working on it tomorrow. Together, it’ll be a fun experience and we get to spend time together,” said Alec and waggled his eyebrows.

Magnus hooked his thumb underneath the belt loop of Alec’s jeans and he pulled him closer. “Now that you put it this way, it does sound kind of cool,” said Magnus and Alec winked. “Okay, let’s have something to eat, I haven’t had anything since this morning,” said Magnus and Alec gave him a horrified look. “I was really, really busy around here,” said Magnus and Alec just nodded and made sure that he fed Magnus properly. 

Afterwards they both tackled putting their wardrobe together - it was quite the quest.


	30. Chapter 30

Alec heard a squeal from the changing room and his eyes widened, but Magnus on the other side of him just smiled and nodded. Ah, yes, he knew what was that a sign of - it was a sign that Isabelle finally managed to find the perfect wedding dress and he just smiled. He,, Alec and Clary were helping Izzy with shopping for her wedding dress. Magnus was to countless of those, but this was the first time that he was so excited and he couldn’t wait to see how the dress looked on Izzy. It looked absolutely stunning before and he just bit his lip, taking in a deep breath and he glanced over at Alec, who didn’t really know what was going on, but Clary just excitedly smiled because that was her reaction as well when she was shopping for her wedding dress and she bit her lip and then glanced over at Magnus, who winked.

“I think that’s the one, huh?” asked Clary and Alec cocked his head to the side because how did she know that? But Magnus also nodded and then sighed happily. Oh, this was so exciting - they were in there for a couple of hours, Isabelle tried on many wedding gowns and she looked absolutely stunning in all of them. Everything fit her perfectly and Magnus bit his lip and then grinned.

“I think you might be right, Biscuit,” said Magnus and Alec perked up. Oh, he really wanted to see how his little sister looked dressed in her wedding dress. Alec didn’t know much about wedding dresses and stuff like that, but he knew that it was pretty exciting. Or maybe he was just being biased because this was Izzy’s wedding. He didn’t go shopping with Clary for her wedding dress, so he didn’t really know. He was on edge as well and he then rubbed his palms together and took in a deep breath.

“Izzy, come out,” whined Alec, because Izzy wasn’t saying much after that little scream, but Clary just shook her head and then took in a deep breath. Unlike Alec, who didn’t have much experiences with weddings, she knew more and she knew that Izzy needed some time with herself; she needed to properly see herself. It was a  _ moment.  _ Magnus chuckled and then gently ruffled Alexander’s hair; always so impatient. 

“Give her some time,” said Clary and then sighed happily. “Finding the perfect dress is such a special moment, she needs a moment for herself,” said Clary and winked. Alec nodded and hummed; yeah that sounded like Izzy. At least when they were shopping for regular clothes, she was always taking a long time inside of those changing rooms, looking the dresses in all different angles, taking pictures of herself to see how she looked. And since this was a wedding dress - which was so much more than a normal trip down to the mall - it made sense to Alec.

“Okay, yes of course,” said Alec and then looked over at the changing room. “Iz, take your time. It’s okay, I’m sorry. This is your moment,” he said and then sighed happily, looking over at Magnus, who took his hand and gave him a little wink and then they kissed softly, pulling away - just that was when the door of the changing room finally opened and the three of them quickly glanced over to the changing room, all of them on edge because they couldn’t wait to see how Izzy looked in the dress. 

Izzy was excited, she couldn’t believe her eyes; she looked amazing in the dress and she was in love - there was no other dress that was going to make her feel that special. And as soon as she stepped through the door, the other three all went quiet, Clary gasping loudly, covering her mouth and Izzy gave her a little smile, glancing over at Magnus and Alec, who were just staring at her. Magnus placed his hand over his chest and gasped loudly as well. Alec, on the other hand, was just staring at his sister, swallowing thickly because it was just… she looked stunning. The dress was made for her, truly.

The gown that Izzy was wearing was strapless, pearly white with embroidery on her bodice. Little rhinestones were sown into the gown, making it appear really magical as it moved, pearls and rhinestones giving it an almost ethereal look. She was also wearing her veil that had matching crystals on it and Alec bit his lip. His sister looked like an angel, truly and he couldn’t believe it, but he was getting a little misty eyes. It was good that their parents weren’t there, they would both be sobbing messes and Alec took in a deep breath and cleared his throat. Wow, this was truly an amazing wedding dress, they needed to get it!

Izzy was glowing, it wasn’t just the dress and she took in a deep breath, looking at herself in the mirror that was outside the changing room again and she took in a deep breath, looking at the other three. “What do you guys think?” asked Izzy and then bit her lip. She loved it, the only thing that was bad about it was the price. She could never really afford it, but she still wanted to try it on. It was such a pity, too, because she loved it so much and she just bit her lip. “It’s-”

“Perfect,” said Clary.

“Wonderful,” said Magnus. “The one.”

“You have to get this one, Iz. Simon will drop when he sees you on your wedding day, truly,” said Alec and Izzy chuckled softly and then glanced at herself in the mirror again, doing a little spin and she smiled. “You look like a princess,” said Alec and Izzy started laughing, biting into her lip and then placed her hands on top of the dress, running her hands down it and nodded.

“I would love to buy it, I love it,” said Izzy.

“Would?” asked Magnus. “Isabelle, darling, you  _ have _ to get it,” said Magnus and Alec quickly nodded. “It would be a crime if you leave this beauty behind,” said Magnus and Izzy just bit her lip. 

“What’s wrong?” asked Alec.

“It’s really expensive,” whispered Izzy and flushed a little bit. Yes, she was trying to keep it under the budget, but-

“Oh, Izzy, we can all chip in,” said Alec and waggled his eyebrows. Izzy bit her lip and then looked over at the mirror and huffed under her breath. She really did love that dress and then she glanced over at Magnus, who nodded. As did Clary. She looked herself in the mirror again and then smiled softly. 

“That expression is priceless, she looks so happy, we’re so getting it,” said Clary.

“Clary-”

“No, no, Biscuit is right,” said Magnus and Clary snorted. “This is your special day, Isabelle, you shouldn’t deny yourself happiness,” said Magnus and then nodded seriously. “We’ll help,” said Magnus and Izzy bit her lip again, looking at herself in the mirror again. “You can’t put a price on that smile,” said Magnus and sent her a little wink. Izzy didn’t know what to say, she felt really touched because they were all so amazing and supportive and she was contemplating it for a little while. 

Just as Izzy was thinking about what to do next, Izzy’s phone started ringing and Alec quickly grabbed it as she left it with them before. He smiled when he saw that it was Robert Facetiming her and Izzy looked over at him. “It’s dad,” said Alec and Izzy happily clapped and nodded to Alec - oh, she wanted her parents to also see her in the dress; maybe they could help her decide. Therefore Alec picked up and grinned when he saw both Maryse and Robert on the other side of the phone call. “He-”

“ _ How’s the shopping going _ ?” asked Maryse.

_ “Yeah, did you already find the dress? _ ” asked Robert and Alec started laughing. He was completely irrelevant at the moment and he was just laughing as he looked over at Izzy, who gave him a little nod and then he looked back down at the screen and took in a deep breath because he couldn’t wait to make the grand reveal to their parents.

“We did, we did,” said Alec.

“ _ Oh, you need to show us, turn the camera around, Alec _ ,” said Robert and Izzy gave him a little nod and was just smiling as Alec flipped the camera of the call and she waved over to the phone, making a little spin. Alec was cracking up as he was watching his parents, because Robert was speechless and Maryse made a little squeal; like Izzy before and Alec quickly signed Izzy to come over and take the phone into her hands. That was what she did and as soon as she picked it up, Robert finally gained his speech. “ _ My little girl’s all grown up, _ ” said Robert and Izzy roller her eyes, but was smiling along.

“Dad, I’ve been a grown up for a while now,” said Izzy and Maryse just clasped her hands together.

“ _ You look like an angel, _ ” said Maryse. “ _ Honey, do you like the dress or do you have another one that you like more than this one? _ ”

“I think that this is the one,” said Izzy softly and Robert nodded.

“ _ Yes, it is, _ ” said Robert. “ _ I can’t believe that in two months my little girl is getting married, _ ” said Robert on the other side of the phone call and Alec wasn’t even surprised when he heard that his father’s voice was shaking a little bit. Magnus’ jaw dropped and he glanced over at Alec.

“Is he crying?” whispered Magnus.

“Probably,” said Alec and chuckled softly. Oh, wow!

“I would love to get it, but it’s kind of more expensive and I don’t know, I-”

“ _ Isabelle, screw the budget, you’re getting this dress. If you’re not gonna buy it, I will, _ ” said Robert and Magnus started laughing on top of his lungs because he loved how invested Robert was into the whole thing and he just smiled, biting into his lip and he just glanced over at Alec, who was smiling over at him and he just sighed happily. He was so happy that he got to be a part of it all. Isabelle’s wedding was going to turn out completely amazing and even though the two of them had kind of made a deal that they wouldn’t mix personal things and business, Izzy was coming over to Magnus for wedding advices more and more; maybe they should work together after all. 

Magnus was going to think about it very seriously; he didn’t realise that he and Izzy had so much in common and this was a perfect way for them to get to know each other a bit more. He was going to ask the woman that was currently working on the wedding if he could join the project. It would be very fun after all!

* * *

Magnus frown deepened as he was going through his notifications and he rubbed the back of his neck. He was laying on his couch, waiting for Alexander to be done with his shower so that the two of them could have their dinner. It was a long day, but he was happy how it all ended up - Isabelle finally got her wedding dress and Magnus was very excited about it, humming along as he looked back down at his phone and he bit his lip. It didn’t make sense, lately his father was very active on social media. Well, he wasn’t posting anything himself, but he liked every single post that he made, it’s been going on for two weeks now, ever since he made that announcement that he was moving in with Alexander and he bit his lip.  _ He even commented a few times.  _ It made no sense, but it made Magnus happy.

Confused, but excited.

And he knew that he shouldn’t get his hopes too much, but he was very… well. Maybe this was his father trying to come in contact with him. His father wasn’t very good when it came to words, he didn’t really like talking about feelings and stuff like that, but if he would want to be a part of Magnus’ life again, they would have to have that talk. It was crucial, but still, it seemed like he was trying. A few likes on Facebook and Instagram probably didn’t mean much, but still it made him wonder and he was waiting patiently for his father to somehow reach out to him; a text, a call, but nothing. So it begged the question - was he just getting his hopes up again? Still, he couldn’t just let it go and he needed to check in with his father. It’s been on his mind for a while now.

_ Maybe his father was also waiting for him to make the first move.  _ But it was… Magnus made the first move more than once and he always got burned, but unlike Asmodeus, Magnus continued to believe in the best in people. It was his flaw, but he didn’t mind it. He liked seeing the best in people, even if it caused him to get hurt more than once. He didn’t want to become like Asmodeus, who always assumed the worst in people. That was something that he really didn’t want, so that was why he was reminding himself to keep his head up. He was working on it and he just huffed under his breath.

“Maybe I should send him a text or something,” said Magnus and then thought about it for a little while. Yeah, calling him wasn’t an option; it went down horrible the last time, but he thought that he could manage holding a conversation with him via texts. Maybe. Hopefully. He just hoped that his father was going to give him some proper answers. Magnus really didn’t know what to think about it all and he did ask his friends and Alec about it. Ragnor didn’t like it at all, he knew Asmodeus too much; he knew how much his friend was put through because of him. Unlike him, Catarina was trying to look it more from a bright side. Raphael was Ragnor and Magnus really didn’t know what to do. Alexander said that he supported his every decision; if he was going to reach out to his father again or not, but if the man was going to hurt him again, Alec told him that he was going to do something about it.  _ Talk to him himself.  _

Magnus smiled and then tapped on his father’s profile and went to messages; he decided to send him a short text after all, but what should he say even? He didn’t know how to bring it up. Maybe he should just ask him about it and not stall too much. He really needed to know what it all meant; he didn’t want to get his hopes up again and he just huffed under his breath as he started typing his father a text, hoping that it would get well received. How sad was it that he was afraid to text his own father? Magnus’ heart dropped and he just shook his head. He really didn’t want to give into all of the negative thoughts and he just plucked up the courage and nodded to himself. 

“It’s going to be okay,” said Magnus and started slowly typing the text, his fingers shaking a little bit. Even though that he claimed that he was over it and that he truly didn’t care, deep down he knew that he still cared. Of course he did; he cared what his father thought of him after all. 

**Magnus:** Hey. Magnus here. I just have a question; you’ve been awfully active on social media lately. Any special reason for liking all of the posts I make on there? 

Magnus re-read the texts a few times and shook his head. No, he didn’t like how it sounded. It sounded too… rude? No, that wasn’t the right word for it, but he wanted to go about it in a more light way and he took in a deep breath. But judging how they left things off the last time, he didn’t know how to sound  _ kinder.  _ He was still hurt by what he said; how Asmodeus dismissed his relationship with Alec. He hated it and he bit his lip. “Okay, okay, let’s try something else,” said Magnus and then deleted what he wrote before and decided to give it another try.

**Magnus:** Father, hello. 

“No, no, no,” whined Magnus, deleting it all.

**Magnus:** Asmodeus, hi.

“Ugh, I hate it,” said Magnus, again deleting it. Maybe the way he started it off the first try was the best.

**Magnus:** Hey. Magnus here.

Okay, good, but he needed more. His first thought was to apologise, but he needed to remind himself that he didn’t do anything wrong. It was Asmodeus’ fault. That was why he decided to keep things short.

**Magnus:** Hey. Magnus here. Can you explain why have you been stalking my social media for the past two weeks?

He didn’t want to overthink too much about it, so he just hit the sent button, chewing on his lower lip. He hoped that his father was going to reply promptly and he kept his eyes focused on the little check mark that was under the sent text. It changed from sent to read in a couple of a few seconds and Magnus perked up. No way! So fast? His heart fastened up a little bit and he sat up straight on the couch, getting ready to receive a reply from his dad. “Huh, he must have been waiting for me to contact him?” asked Magnus himself and smiled a little bit. Maybe it showed that his father truly heard what he said the last time - how he needed to try harder and how he felt? Oh, it would mean a lot to Magnus!

Magnus’ heart made a little jump when he saw the three dots under his father’s name and he took in a deep breath. Okay, he was typing back to him already! He hadn’t received a text back from his father so quickly in a long time. Biting into his lip, Magnus took in a deep breath and his phone buzzed, quickly glancing down and his father truly did reply to him. Magnus held his breath, reading the text.

**Asmodeus:** Hello. Yes. I’ve been trying to get your attention.

Magnus’ heart warmed up, but he reminded himself, again, to play it cool.

**Magnus:** Why?

He sent that reply quickly, but he felt a little bit hopeful. So his father truly was trying to reach out to him. That made him very happy, truly very happy. His father’s reply came back rather quick that time too.

**Asmodeus:** You know why…

Magnus raised his brow - this wasn’t good enough. He needed Asmodeus to say it. But honestly he knew that he was expecting too much from his father and he puffed his cheeks, feeling annoyance kicking in again and he shook his head.

**Magnus:** No, I don’t. Enlighten me, please.

**Asmodeus:** I don’t like how we left things off after that phone call.

Magnus swallowed and then nodded. Okay, this was good, yes. His father took a bit longer than time to reply, but it was to expected. This was him trying, Magnus could just feel it! His excitement was off the roof, but he didn’t want it to overcome him. He kept his replies chill and not too excited.

**Magnus:** Yes, I didn’t like it either.

**Magnus:** But I’m not gonna take back the things I’ve said, I meant what I said. I’m not going to apologise. Not this time, I’m done apologising, dad. 

Magnus held in his breath, wondering what his father was going to say to him. He expected the man to flee and not reply back, but he replied and Magnus was honestly surprised in a good way when he read Asmodeus’ reply. 

**Asmodeus:** It’s not like that…

**Asmodeus:** You know that I’m not good at these things…

**Asmodeus:** But that phone call made me realise I haven’t been the best father to you.

“Well, no shit, Sherlock,” said Magnus and rolled his eyes. A new text from his father came in.

**Asmodeus:** If you would give me another chance… we need to talk.

Magnus’ hands were shaking and he took in a deep breath, biting into his lip and he was re-reading those few sentences over and over again. That was the further he ever came to talking about it with his father and he felt optimistic. Magnus would love that; maybe he was too trusting, but-

**Magnus:** Okay.

**Asmodeus:** Thank you. 

Magnus made sure to let Alec know about his father reaching out to him like that soon after he came out of the bathroom after that refreshing shower that he had. He found Magnus smiling and sitting on the couch, he looked so happy and he wondered what happened to make Magnus smile so much; whatever it was, he was glad that it happened. Alec didn’t really know what to think about Asmodeus suddenly having such a change of heart - it was truly really sudden, but it made Magnus smile so much. Magnus really was amazing that he was prepared to give his father another chance so easily. 

Maybe Alec was just too pessimistic, but he wouldn’t give into it so easily, but then again he always did have a hard time with forgiving people. He was happy to see that Magnus was in such high spirits, he was in a very good mood and he was glad about that. He didn’t really care for the man that much, at least not yet, but he hoped that they would get to meet each other some time. And what he wished for the most was that he was never going to hurt Magnus ever again because if he was… then Alec was going to step in for real that time. 


	31. Chapter 31

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, wow, this turned out to be almost the size of 2 chapters xD. 6.5k words. Quite a lot ^^; But my muse was on fire xD.  
> Happy reading and I hope you'll like it :)  
> Thanks for all of the support you guys are showing this fanfic, it's amazing :) I love you all so much xxo.

It’s been around two weeks since Magnus connected with Asmodeus again and he had to say that his father was a changed man; at least he appeared to be. The two of them still didn’t see each other in person, they’ve been keeping their conversation mainly in text form, but Magnus had an idea how the two of them could finally meet up in person. He was again invited to the Lightwood household for a little dinner and he wanted his father to join him there. He made sure that he told everyone how amazing his father was suddenly and the Lightwoods were glad to see that Magnus’ father was finally trying for real this time and were very accepting and willing to have him over for dinner. They promised that they weren’t going to let the past affect their first impression on Asmodeus; they were really open minded and always ready to accept new people in their lives. That was what Magnus loved so much about them and he was really excited about it. He wished that his father was going to agree to coming to such a dinner because he really wanted his father to finally meet all of the amazing new people in his life. 

But dinners like this one weren’t really Asmodeus’ fore, Magnus knew that, so that was why he knew that he had to pace himself. He wasn’t going to allow himself to get too excited, not until he was going to ask his father and have him promise that he was going to attend the family dinner. Magnus had learned from his past mistakes, he was trying really hard not to expect too much from his father. But he really seemed like he was trying a lot this time and Magnus was just glowing and to him it was perfect if the two of them were going to see in person for the first time in months at the Lightwood dinner. It was kind of extra, yes, and dramatic, but Magnus liked it. Was his father going to like the idea too?

There was only one way to find out, really. Magnus was sitting in his office, clutching on his phone as he was trying to calm himself down a little bit. He was on a lunch break, but he was going to use that lunch break to call his father and finally tell him about his plan, in the hopes that he was going to think that it was a good idea, too. In reality, if his father wouldn’t agree to meeting him over at the dinner it was going to crush his heart again, but he didn’t want to think about that. He focused on the good and the good thing was that Asmodeus said that he was really going to try his best, so coming to the dinner would be the right thing. Magnus was sure that he was going to show up, yet, he was still very nervous.

Magnus could tell that Alec wasn’t as excited about him about the whole thing - but Alec did tell him that he was just being cautious, so Magnus didn’t really hold it against him. All that Alec knew about his father were the bad things and Magnus wanted to prove it to Alec (and mostly himself) that his father was all in all a good guy, just too misunderstood. This dinner meant a lot to Magnus and if it wasn’t going to go as planned - that was if his father was going to agree to come to the family dinner - then he was done. It was a way for him to have his father to really show it to him if he truly was putting him on first place. Again, if he was going to promise to come. If he wasn’t going to promise, then it was okay. He just couldn’t deal with another broken promise from him.

“Okay, I need to stop thinking about it too much, I’ll just call in ask, there’s nothing I can lose from just asking,” said Magnus, biting into his lower lip as he searched for his father’s number among his contacts and his smile widened when he finally found his number and without even twice about it, he just pressed call. He knew that if he would spend too much time thinking about it that he would probably chicken out and that was something that he didn’t want to happen, holding in his breath as the phone was ringing. Was his father even going to pick up? Maybe he was busy with work or- Magnus didn’t have to wonder about it for too long because his father ended up picking the phone call a lot earlier than per usual and Magnus’ excitement skyrocketed. Oh, he was so nervous, but at the same time, he was very excited!

“ _ Magnus, hi _ ,” said Asmodeus on the other side of the phone call and Magnus perked up because this was the first time that he hears his father say his name with that amount of warmth and love. Magnus’ heart shuddered and he bit his lip. “ _ What a lovely surprise that you called in. Is everything okay? _ ” asked Asmodeus and Magnus was just in awe. His father truly did change! Magnus wasn’t so scared anymore about asking him about the dinner. He was very sure that he was going to agree!

“Dad, hi,” said Magnus happily and then took in a deep breath. “Yeah, yeah, all is okay. I just… well, we’ve been texting for almost two weeks and I thought that I could give you a call. I mean I wanted to hear you. Is that okay?” asked Magnus and waited for his father to reply back to him.

“ _ Of course it is. I’ve been meaning to call you myself too, _ ” said Asmodeus. But he didn’t! Magnus frowned.

“Why didn’t you?”

“ _ I was giving you space. I didn’t want to push it too much, so I thought that it’s for the best if I wait until you’d be ready. I’m sorry, I truly want to do the right thing this time around and, _ ” said Asmodeus and made a little pause. “ _ I just don’t want to fuck it up again with you. I’m very glad that you finally called me. It’s good to finally hear you again, _ ” said Asmodeus and the smile on Magnus’ face was warm and bright. He was so happy. He was beyond happy and he nodded.

“I see. Thank you, I really appreciate it,” said Magnus and then chuckled softly. “Thank you for listening to me this time properly. It’s good. I want us to be on good terms, finally. It’s definitely a nice change.”

“ _ It really is, isn’t it? _ ” asked Asmodeus and then made another pause. His voice was warm and kind. That kind of voice he only used on his daughters and rarely on him. “ _ I would also want to see you in person so that we can talk about things, _ ” said Asmodeus and Magnus’ eyes widened. He did? Oh, then it was the perfect opportunity! “ _ But, if you don’t want to yet, we can take it slow. Maybe chat like this over the phone or- _ ”

“This is exactly why I’m calling you,” said Magnus quickly. “I-I want to see you in person too,” said Magnus. Magnus was so happy and he let the excitement get the best of him even though he was trying to brace himself. But it wasn’t working out really.

“ _ Really? Oh, you don’t know how happy this makes me, _ ” said Asmodeus. “ _ We could go grab a- _ ”

“There’s a dinner over at Alexander’s home this weekend, Saturday evening and I thought,” said Magnus and took in a deep breath. “Well, it was kind of a sudden thought, but I thought that it would be nice if we you’d join us for dinner?” asked Magnus, his hand shaking. What was his father going to say? He suddenly got very quiet and that worried Magnus. Maybe it was too much? Magnus was known to be always over the top, his father always told him that! Magnus was biting on his lip and he then cleared his throat. “I mean it’s just a thought, you don’t have to-”

“ _ Meet the Lightwoods, all of them? _ ” asked Asmodeus. His voice was kind of-

“Y-yeah,” said Magnus and cleared his throat. “O-oh you probably had something else in mind, right?” asked Magnus and then laughed dryly. “This is probably too soon, is it?” asked Magnus and then looked around his office. Ah, so it wasn’t going to be as easy as he thought it would be, huh? “With just the two of us, I-I get it, I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable,” said Magnus and then puffed his cheeks. It still kind of hurt and he looked down. 

“ _ It’s just a big step, Magnus, _ ” said Asmodeus and Magnus just nodded. Right, right, right! “ _ But then again, you’re already living with the boy and I haven’t met him yet, _ ” said Asmodeus and Magnus perked up. Yes? Asmodeus kept quiet for a long time and Magnus was nervously breathing. “ _ Okay, _ ” said Asmodeus finally and Magnus’ jaw dropped. Really? Just like that?! “ _ I will come to the dinner, _ ” he said, but what Magnus didn’t hear was the uncurtain tone of his voice. He was too happy and too excited and he just pressed a hand over his mouth and he shuddered.

“Really? You mean it?” asked Magnus and Asmodeus was quiet that time for a little while, but he spoke up.

“ _ Yes. _ ”

Magnus was so excited. “You promise?” asked Magnus and Asmodeus was quiet even longer that time. But Magnus didn’t think of it too much, he was too, too happy! His father was coming to the dinner!

“ _ It’s a promise, _ ” said Asmodeus finally, voice small and Magnus was so happy! His father  _ promised.  _ He was going to meet all of the Lightwoods! It was the best day ever!

* * *

Magnus found Alec in the kitchen after he came back home and he literally couldn’t contain his excitement. It was such amazing news and he couldn’t wait to finally tell him. He jumped behind Alec’s back, who was cooking and he wrapped his arms around his boyfriend, placing a kiss upon his cheek and Alec smiled all the way up to his ears. Oh, his boyfriend’s day went well, so it seemed! “Hmm, you’re in a good mood,” said Alec and slowly turned around to face Magnus, who just nodded and he leaned up to kiss Alec’s lips. Mmm, it was a long kiss, savouring it for a little while.

“Alexander, today’s the best day ever,” said Magnus and Alec happily chuckled. He was glad to see Magnus in such high spirits, but it made him wonder - what happened? 

“Oh, I see, I see,” said Alec and wrapped his arms around Magnus’ waist and pulled him closer. “What happened?” he asked and Magnus pushed his forehead against Alec’s and his smile melted Alec’s heart again. He happily sighed and Magnus took in a deep breath. He had such a big and important announcement to make!

“I called my dad today,” said Magnus and Alec nodded.

“Assuming it went okay?” asked Alec carefully and Magnus just nodded.

“Oh, Alexander, my dad really is trying this time,” said Magnus and Alec nodded. Good, he should be trying more this time! “You’ll never believe what happened,” said Magnus and Alec cocked his head to the side. “We talked about how we want to meet in person, finally, and I mentioned the dinner that your folks are preparing this Saturday,” said Magnus and Alec’s eyes widened. No way, Magnus’ dad said that he was coming? Just like this? Kind of too easy, was it?

“No way!”

“Yes way!” said Magnus and he was literally buzzing with excitement. “He said that he’s gonna come. He promised,” said Magnus and then puffed his cheeks. Alec finally smiled and then hummed. Oh, he was impressed. So, it seemed that Asmodeus really was invested this time, it made Alec happy because Magnus was through so much and it was nice to see that Asmodeus was finally willing to put in the work. “You don’t understand how happy I am, this is the best day ever,” said Magnus and then shook his head. “I can’t believe, I’ll finally get to introduce you all to him,” said Magnus.

“This is amazing,” said Alec and kissed Magnus’ forehead. “You know, I wasn’t so sure about it, but now I can see that he is truly trying. I’m sorry for ever doubting him,” said Alec because he kind of felt bad that he assumed the worst in the man. “But it is who I am, I believe that it’s hard for people to change, but I’m so happy to be proved wrong,” said Alec and Magnus chuckled and nodded.

“Same,” said Mangus. “Oh, I was so scared, but this is amazing,” said Magnus and Alec nodded.

“I have to text my parents about it,” said Alec and then smiled. “Need my dad to promise not to attack yours when he comes there,” said Alec even though Robert promised that he was keeping an open head about it and Magnus just nodded.

“Fuck, I’m so happy, I can’t wait,” said Magnus and Alec nodded, pulling his boyfriend in for another kiss.

* * *

It was the next day and Magnus was spending some time with his friends. It was after work and then decided to catch up over at a little dinner. Ragnor, Raphael and Catarina agreed immediately, going out with Magnus was always fun and Magnus was so excited about telling the good news to his friends. He knew that they were going to be very happy about it. Catarina was the first one that noticed that Magnus was in a very good mood and she was very curious to hear what was going on in Magnus’ life that made him so happy. Whatever it was, she was already happy about it because Magnus’ happiness was something that was very important to her knowing all the shit that he had to go through. 

So after their food finally arrived, Magnus decided to break the silence. Ragnor and Raphael have also noticed the huge grin on Magnus’ face and Ragnor kind of thought that maybe it had to do something with Alec? He didn’t want to get ahead of himself but because were going to amazing between them, he kind of thought that maybe Alec proposed? Maybe it would be still a bit too soon, but the two of them were made for each other, all of them could see it and he was very happy if that was the case. 

“Guys, I have to tell you something,” said Magnus and then rubbed his palms together. “Oh, this is so exciting,” he said and Catarina bumped Ragnor with her elbow and they both grinned, Raphael also perking up because he was very interested to hear the reason why Magnus was smiling so much that day. “It’s big,” said Magnus and Ragnor waggled his eyebrows.

“Alec proposed?” asked Ragnor with a hopeful tone in his voice and Magnus just snorted and shook his head. But that was a nice thought - for the future, of course. But his news were almost as exciting and he cleared his throat. “No?” asked Ragnor and felt a little bit down. Pity, he was about to propose doing their wedding. He had a lot of ideas, but-

“Not yet,” said Magnus and winked.

“What happened then?” asked Raphael and Magnus bit his lip and then finally broke the silence for real. He was just so happy and excited about it - Saturday was in three days and he already told the Lightwoods all about it. They were also very excited about it and Magnus was very grateful that they kept such an open mind about it all. They knew about Asmodeus and how he really was, but they were all ready to put it behind them. It was truly amazing how accepting they were. Right, he needed to get back on track.

“Well, as you know,” said Magnus. “I’m slowly starting to reconnect with my father,” said Magnus and Catarina nodded. Ragnor and Raphael glanced at each other, both of them slowly nodding as well, but Ragnor didn’t look too pleased about it. Still, he forced a little smile and then cleared his voice. “And something huge happened yesterday,” said Magnus. “I mean like I’ve told you, Cat, I wanted to see him in person, finally and,” said Magnus and then clasped his hands together. “He agreed. To meet not only me, but all of the Lightwoods,” said Magnus and then sighed happily. “I mean I know it’s fast, but he promised that he wanted to come and I’m just so excited, he’s really changed so much,” said Magnus and then glanced at his friends. 

Unlike him, they weren’t smiling anymore. Why weren’t they smiling? That kind of bothered Magnus a little bit and he wanted to make a comment about it, but Catarina put on a smile and then nodded. “That’s great, Magnus,” said Catarina, trying to put as much enthusiasm into her voice as she possibly could. But it was tough. Unlike Lighwoods, they knew Asmodeus more than them and they didn’t have such an easy time in giving him  _ another  _ chance. Lord knew just how many  _ another _ chances the man already got. 

“Right?” asked Magnus and happily sighed, glancing over at Raphael and Ragnor. Raphael was looking down and Ragnor had a puzzled expression on his face. Magnus didn’t understand it. “You’re not happy for me?” asked Magnus and then bit his lip. “Guys, this is big for me, it means a lot-”

“Magnus,” said Ragnor and then he cleared his voice. He really didn’t want to ruin Magnus’ good mood, but Magnus needed to realise some things. “We’re happy for you, we truly are,” said Ragnor and Raphael nodded. “But don’t you think you’re getting your hopes up a bit too much?” warned him Ragnor. He tried to be discreet, but he needed to come out and say it. 

Magnus was annoyed and he clicked with his tongue. “What is that supposed to mean?” asked Magnus, his voice getting cold.

“It’s just… Asmodeus, he’s,” said Raphael and then bit his lip. “Well, you know. It wouldn’t be the first time that he promised something and then he-” said Raphael and his voice trailed off. Ragnor nodded and sighed sadly.

“Remember that time when he  _ promised _ that he’ll show up for that theatre show that you had in high school?” asked Ragnor, giving just one example. Magnus’ heart sunk and he glanced down, gritting his teeth. His heart was beating fast and he didn’t like it… why did they have to remind him of that? It was heartbreaking, so why bring it up? He knew that they were just looking out for him, but at the same time, couldn’t they be a bit more supportive? Magnus’ heart was feeling heavy.

“He broke almost every promise he ever gave to you,” said Raphael and Magnus glared at them.

“It’s different this time, he’s trying to change,” said Magnus and Ragnor didn’t say anything. Magnus’ annoyance grew and he shook his head. “So, you’re saying that my father will never love me?” asked Magnus, feeling hurt and he didn’t really mean what he said. Ragnor quickly shook his head, feeling terrible. Maybe they should have kept their mouth shut.

“No, that’s not what we’re saying at all,” said Ragnor.

“Magnus, we’re just looking out for you. We don’t want you to get hurt again,” said Catarina quickly. “But I’m sure he truly means it this time. You said yourself that you’ve never seen him try this much,” said Catarina and Magnus quickly nodded.  _ His father wouldn’t break another promise… would he?  _ Magnus’ heart broke and Raphael quickly apologise. As did Ragnor.

“We didn’t mean it like this, Magnus, you know that we didn’t,” said Raphael and eventually Magnus nodded. 

“I’m sure he’ll show up,” said Catarina and Magnus nodded again.

“Of course he will, he promised,” said Magnus and his lower lip trembled. Ragnor’s heart twisted because he saw it only then just how much this meant to Magnus. If Asmodeus dared to do something as it was  _ not _ showing up to that dinner he was going to personally punch him and break his nose. Or worse. “He has to,” said Magnus and Catarina placed her hand on top of Magnus’ back and gently rubbed it.

“Of course he will, he does love you. In his own way,” said Catarina and Magnus nodded, cheering up a little bit.

His father was showing up… right?

* * *

Saturday finally rolled around and Magnus was literally bursting with excitement. It was finally the day. He managed to get rid of the worries. He was sure that this time it was going to be different. His father was really trying to be a part of his life this time around and Magnus was just so excited. He and Alec went over to Lightwoods pretty early into the afternoon because Magnus wanted to be there when things were getting ready. He was just really, really excited and Alec was just smiling because his boyfriend was glowing and his good mood was really spreading all around; he was radiating happiness and Alec was just smiling along he was also very excited about meeting Bane Senior. Also very nervous, he needed to make a good impression!

Robert and Maryse were fussing over the dinner again and Magnus was there to help, as was Alec. This was important to Magnus, he could see it, and he was there along, supporting and being there for him. He wanted that the dinner was going to be amazing, so he was there to help out with everything. Asmodeus was supposed to be arriving at six that evening. Magnus texted him the address; his father still didn’t get back to him that day, but to be honest, Magnus was too occupied with getting things done that he didn’t really think and worry about that.

It was four o’clock and they already started cooking some of the things. Magnus was helping Maryse with the main course, Alec and Robert were planning what to cook for dessert and it was truly amazing. All of them working together, Magnus was having the best time ever. Time passed by quickly when one was having fun and before they knew it, it was almost six o’clock. It was almost six o’clock for sure; Izzy, Simon, Clary and Jace also joined them at around fifteen minutes to six. Everyone was already there. Everyone, but Asmodeus. 

Where was he?

But, Magnus didn’t worry too about it, at first. His father was known to getting places late. Also, it was weekend and traffic was hell at that time as well. But he did keep checking his phone to see if he got any texts back from his father. He saw that all of the texts that he sent to him during the day were read, but he didn’t reply back to him. To any of them. That was a sign that Asmodeus was fleeing and not committing something, but he  _ promised.  _ He promised that it was going to be different this time, that he was going to put him on first place, for a change. But Magnus’ fear was worsening as the clock kept ticking away.

_ 6:10 pm _

Alec noticed that Magnus was getting anxious because Asmodeus still wasn’t there - the dinner was already prepared, the food was ready to be served. Maryse and Robert were also very confused by the whole thing - where was Magnus’ father? Robert was getting more and more pissed off as was Alec because… did Magnus just get tossed aside  _ again.  _ Magnus was pacing around the living room, Max trying to keep him company, but it didn’t really help.

“I’m sure it’s just traffic, right?” asked Magnus finally and looked around the room. 

Alec didn’t speak up, but Maryse nodded quicky. He didn’t want Magnus to feel too bad, so she wanted to cheer him up. “I’m sure it’s just traffic, honey,” said Maryse softly and Magnus gave her a little unsure smile. “He’ll be here in any minute now, you’ll see,” said Maryse and Izzy nodded.

“He’ll come,” said Izzy.

“I hope,” said Magnus and stood up again, taking his phone out. No texts. No calls. “I’ll, um, I’ll just step into the kitchen so that I can call him, I need to make sure when he’s coming,” said Magnus, biting his lower lip as it was starting to tremble. His world was again falling apart and- Alec nodded, Magnus wanted to be alone, he could see it and he glanced at his dad as Magnus disappeared through the door.

“I’ll seriously beat Asmodeus up if he doesn't’ show up today,” whispered Alec.

“Count me in,” said Robert, shaking from anger.

* * *

Magnus’ heart was beating fast when he was waiting for his father to pick up. He didn’t waste any time with it that time, he didn’t overthink things, he was frankly too upset. He just needed to know if Asmodeus was coming or not, his heart already breaking in half, but he wanted to believe that his father didn’t lie to him. Not this time because it was going to… he’d never forgive him. Not for this. Were his friends right - did he toss him aside again? Why was it so hard to commit to one thing when it came to him? Didn’t he love him? Magnus cleared his throat and he took in a deep breath. 

Asmodeus didn’t pick up.

Magnus was pissed off, holding the tears back because he didn’t want to cry. Not because of his father. Not again. Never again. So, he kept calling him over and over again. He knew that his father could hear his phone calls, he just probably refused to pick up. He saw all of those texts and he didn’t reply, so this was him again ghosting his own son. Sniffling, Magnus glanced up and quickly wiped his wet eyes, his hands shaking. It took five times of missed calls before Asmodeus finally finally managed to pick up and Magnus’ heart was shaking. He probably had a good explanation, right? It wasn’t… he didn’t break another promise, did he?

Magnus took in a deep breath when his father picked up. Asmodeus picked up, but he didn’t say anything. Magnus cleared his throat and then nodded. “Dad?” asked Magnus, his voice small and Asmodeus still didn’t say. “Are-are you on the way?” asked Magnus. More silence.  _ Great.  _ No. No. No. “Just checking in because we don’t want the food get cold,” said Magnus and then laughed dryly. “Is the traffic bad?” asked Magnus and Asmodeus took in a deep breath.

“ _ Something came up, _ ” said Asmodeus. “ _ Work. You know how busy- _ ”

“But it’s Saturday,” said Magnus, interrupting Asmodeus and took in a deep breath, making a long pause and his eyes welled up again. He was looking forward to this for days, this meant everything to him. It happened again. His friends were right. What was he supposed to tell Alec and the others? He was so embarrassed. “How-how can you be busy with work on a Saturday evening?” asked Magnus.

“ _ A phone call came from a client just a few minutes before I was coming on the way and it’s really big. I can’t- _ ”

“But you promised,” said Magnus, voice breaking and he again looked up. No, he wasn’t going to cry.  _ No.  _ “You promised that this time is going to be different,” said Magnus and shook his head.

“ _ It is, I really didn’t mean for this to- _ ”

“No. No excuses, I don’t want to hear them,” said Magnus and shook his head. “It’s enough, dad, I’m done,” said Magnus and Asmodeus was again silent on the other side of the phone call. “Is it really so hard to love me?” asked Magnus, voice breaking in the end, a little sob escaping past his lips.

“ _ No, Magnus, this isn’t it. It really- _ ”

Magnus cancelled the phone call. He didn’t want to hear it anymore. He needed to… tell the others that he got stood up again. That he was worthless to his dad. How far. Again he got burned and he took in a deep breath, wiped the tears and took in a deep breath. It was okay. He pulled himself together and went back to the living room, where the others were waiting for him. 

Alec stood up as soon as Magnus stepped through the door and the first thing that he noticed was the sheer devastation on Magnus’ face. His eyes were red and puffy, his makeup smeared and he was beyond pissed off. He wanted to be calm for Magnus, but at the same time- “Um, so, my dad isn’t showing up,” said Magnus and then threw the phone onto the sofa. “Apparently work came in last minute and he-he,” said Magnus. “He thinks that his work is more important than getting to know me and-and all of you,” said Magnus and Alec shook his head. He was going to- “I’m sorry, you guys, you did such an amazing dinner. I wanted this to go well, but it all got ruined. I feel so embarrassed and-” he started, but Maryse stepped over to Magnus and hugged him.

All that Alec wanted to do was to hug Magnus too, but he couldn’t settle down. He hadn’t been this angry. Ever. His foot was impatient tapping against the floor as he watched Magnus fight back the tears and he shook his head. Nope. He wasn’t going to let this happen. Asmodeus was getting there. No work was going to interrupt Magnus’ happiness; if that was even really what happened. Work, yeah, not on Saturday. Alec was going to hug Magnus for hours to come, but now he just needed to go out and cool off. Or he was going to throw a fit. 

And fix this. He was going fix this. 

Alec took in a deep breath when he was standing outside, taking a few big breaths. Oh, fuck, how much he wanted to punch that wall over there at the side, but then he figured that it would hurt too much and he just shook his head. Okay, yes, he was just going to count to ten and relax. Pull himself together, but he couldn’t. He grabbed his phone out of his pocket, going over to his Messenger app and he didn’t even hesitate anymore. He was calling Asmodeus; he didn’t have his number, but he could call him over the app. He was going to tell him what went; he couldn’t just sit back and watch Asmodeus hurt Magnus over and over like this. Not anymore. 

Alec kept an open mind and heart about, thinking that it was really going to be different. Alec furiously typed Asmodeus’ name in, found his profile and just tapped on the  _ call _ option. Oh, he was going to make sure that Asmodeus was going to pick up. If not, he was going to find his location, somehow. He was going to find it. He didn’t care how. Go there and- “Pick up you fucking coward!” yelled out Alec because Asmodeus didn’t pick up for quite a while and just as he did, Asmodeus picked up. He heard him say that? Good!

“ _ Excuse me? _ ” asked the voice from other side of the phone call. “ _ Who is- _ ”

“You really do have some nerve, don’t you?” asked Alec, not letting Asmodeus speak up. “Oh, this is Alec. You know, your son’s boyfriend and I’m officially sick of this. I stood there and watch you hurt Magnus once, but I’m not gonna let you do it again. You promised you’d be here, you promised,” said Alec and took in a deep breath. Fuck, he was so pissed off. Silence on the other side of the call and Alec quickly checked if the other hung up, but he didn’t. “Say something!” he roared. 

“ _ You really do have a nerve to call me like this and- _ ”

“Yes, yes I do,” said Alec and then cleared his throat. “Magnus was so excited about you coming here and for what? Your son is in there, crying,” said Alec and his heart broke. “For once, be a father to him and get your ass here. Did work really come in between or did you just need an excuse, huh?”

“ _ Work really did come in last minute, but, _ ” said Asmodeus. It was true, but he could easily put it for another day. “ _ Meeting your family, it’s such a big step and- _ ”

“I don’t give a fuck, I really don’t. You promised, you will get here,” said Alec and then shook his head. “Did you even mean what you said? That you want to be a part of Magnus’ life? Or was it all a bluff?!”

“ _ O-of course I meant it, I love my son. But sometimes, he gets too excited and… it’s tough. I’m trying, I really am, but- _ ”

“You know what you are? A coward,” said Alec “Magnus is amazing, truly is. Always thinks the best of you and you just took advantage of that,” said Alec. 

“ _ I know that my son is amazing. I, _ ” said Asmodeus and took a big breath. “ _ Don’t you think I know that? I love my boy and how I’ve treated him in the past… I’m a coward, I know I am, _ ” said Asmodeus and Alec shook his head. Yeah, well he needed to do something about it. “ _ I didn’t mean to. I really… oh, God, what have I done, _ ” said Asmodeus, who was now talking more to himself than to Alec. 

“Let Magnus down. Again,” said Alec as a reminder. “Now you’ll do as I say; you’ll get your ass here. You will apologise properly, tell him all of what you’ve told me just now,” said Alec. “Face your fears, for fuck’s fake. Magnus loves you, you idiot, he will forgive you right away because that’s he’s amazing. You will make this the best day of his life. You will or I swear to God,” said Alec and felt himself tearing up as well. He loved Magnus and to see Asmodeus treat him like that-

“ _ I’m embarrassed how I’ve acted in the past and that’s why I… am embarrassed of my own actions, this is why it’s been easier to accept work instead of coming down there, _ ” said Asmodeus and Alec took in a deep breath. Alec understood that, to some degree, but at the same time-

“Tell him that, not me,” said Alec. “Be an adult, I beg you, for once in your life be here for Magnus,” said Alec, feeling his anger slowly calming down. “Tell him all of this. Now,” said Alec and Asmodeus in the end finally came around. The full circle, promising that he was going to show up right away. Alec nodded and then took in a deep breath. He wasn’t going to tell Magnus, though, he needed to see Asmodeus there first.

* * *

After that heated phone call with Magnus’ dad, Alec returned back inside, making sure that he hugged Magnus tightly and all of that support and love made Magnus tear up all over again, holding onto Alec for a long time. Robert and Maryse were pissed off, Jace and Simon were planning how they were going to beat Asmodeus up, Clary, Izzy and Alec were trying to cheer Magnus up. And Alec was waiting, looking over at the door; if the man wasn’t showing up for real, he was going to pay him a little visit. And around an hour later, the doorbell rang. 

Alec perked up, his heart speeding up. Alec decided to be the one to open the door, hurrying over to it and he took in a deep breath. It better had been Asmodeus. They weren’t expecting anyone else. Alec took in a deep breath and opened the door. And there indeed stood a tall, thin man. Longer black hair, dressed in black and he didn’t dare to look up and look at Alec. Alec’s heart made a jump and he nodded. “Alec, who is it?” asked Robert, hollering from the living room.

“I-” started Asmodeus, but his voice trailed off.

Alec gave him a little nod, but still he didn’t like him very much. “The last guest, dad, the dinner can finally begin, though, we’ll have to heat up the food as it all got cold,” said Alec, eyes glaring at Asmodeus. As soon as Alec said that, Magnus was on his legs.  _ Last guest was his father, did he really come?!  _ “Finally,” said Alec, his voice low so that only Asmodeus could hear him.

“Sorry,” said Asmodeus and Alec opened his mouth to say something, but Magnus appeared from behind the corner and his eyes widened. His father was there, he really showed up! And work? Magnus’ eyes were getting misty and he slowly walked up to Alec and Asmodeus. 

“You came?” asked Magnus and Asmodeus nodded. “And work?” he asked. 

“Can wait,” said Asmodeus.

“Was it just an excuse?” asked Magnus, voice shaking and Asmodeus shook his head.

“No, client really did contact me, I didn’t make it up,” said Asmodeus and Magnus nodded. “But,” said Asmodeus and shook his head. “This doesn’t excuse that I almost broke a promise again,” said Asmodeus and Magnus nodded. No, no it didn’t. “The truth is - I was afraid. I’m a coward,” said Asmodeus and Magnus took in a deep breath. “I’m ashamed how I treated you and now I wasted the chance you’ve given me,” said Asmodeus, shaking his head. “I know I don’t show it because I’m a terrible father,” he said. “But I do love you, son,” said Asmodeus and Magnus broke down. “And you’re the easiest person to love, I’m just-” he started, but didn’t get to finish as Magnus walked over to him and wrapped his arms around him. 

Magnus sobbed softly and hiccuped when his father hugged him back and Alec smiled softly. Thank. God. “I’m scared too, dad, I know h-how it-it is,” said Magnus. “It’s okay, you still came. You didn’t break your promise,” said Magnus. It meant the world to him. It really did.

Asmodeus glanced up at Alec and mouthed a  _ thank you  _ to him and Alec just nodded. He was going to thank him later properly. Alec approached him aggressively, but that was what he needed. He needed a push and Asmodeus puffed his cheeks as he held his son tightly to himself. Magnus slowly calmed down. He was happy. His father showed up. The promise wasn’t broken and Magnus was… it was the best day ever. And Asmodeus realised one thing; the boy really loved his son. Alec was the one for Magnus, he was truly a good person. 

And upon receiving a long lecture from all of the Lightwoods present there, the dinner finally started. And Asmodeus realised that he had a lot of making up to do to Magnus, but this was the step in the right direction. 

And as for Magnus - he was happy. Beyond happy. Even if the dinner started off as kind of rocky. He understood his father’s hesitation and he was happy that he told him about it. 

And a happy Magnus was all Alec could wish for. 


	32. Chapter 32

The dinner at the Lightwoods turned out… good enough. It wasn’t all perfect like Magnus had imagined it. He wanted it to all go smoothingly, but it didn’t even after his father showed up. The atmosphere in there was truly stuffy, Lightwoods were pissed at Asmodeus for being such a coward. They did have an open mind when going into it, but he let them down and they were just… trying really hard and Magnus didn’t hold it against them. But, still, he was happy. His father showing up meant everything to him, it really did. And the dinner wasn’t perfect and fairytale like, but it was  _ real _ and grounded. Magnus knew that even if his father showed up, things weren’t magically fixed. A lot of time was going to have to pass for him to be fully able to trust his father again, but again, it was a step in the right direction and he was really glad about it. But one good act didn’t magically fix and made disappear what happened in the past. Magnus still didn’t understand many, many things, but he was hoping that Asmodeus would be able to answer to some of them because he needed to know  _ why.  _

Why any of it, really. Asmodeus did say that he was a coward for treating him like that in the past, but Magnus needed to know why. Even if it was going to hurt, he needed to know and he was going to ask him when time was going to be right. Still, he felt a lot better about the whole thing. Having his father tell him that he loved him and that he was the easiest person to love meant a lot to him and it healed the wound in his heart just a little bit and he was content about that. He was truly glad that they were slowly moving past everything that happened in the past. And since Asmodeus was trying to be more involved in Magnus’ life, the two of them were meeting up again over a lunch break, just a few days after that lunch and it was different. 

It was going to be just the two of them. Maybe Magnus decided to meet up with his father at the dinner over at the Lightwoods because it was easier than meeting the man all alone for the first time in literal months. It was definitely easier because he had people that loved around him, but this time he was going to be meeting up with him alone. At the same time, it was going to give them a chance to talk about more private things - about things that they couldn’t have discussed over at the dinner since others were around them as well and Magnus was looking forward to it as he was heading over to the restaurant, his heart beating fast with anticipation and excitement.

Magnus told his friends about Asmodeus showing up at the dinner and honestly they were shocked and not surprised that he almost didn’t come. They expected him to break his promise again, all of them, including Catarina and Magnus didn’t hold it against them because he realised it then that he needed to lower his expectations a little bit. The whole incident did clear his mind a little bit and he knew that his friends were right the last time when they warned him about the past; they were only looking out for him and he understood it. But they were also impressed because maybe this time it was going to be different indeed; he seemed to be trying a lot harder than before. And Magnus knew that if he would fuck it up again that they would probably end up beating him up. It made him smile because he knew just how much his friends loved and supported him.  _ They always had his back.  _ Always. 

Magnus hummed, lost in his thoughts and he looked up, realising that the cab had already stopped in front of the restaurant. He thanked the driver, paid for the ride and then he got out of the car and took in a deep breath, rubbing his palms together and then put on a little smile. He was looking forward to this little lunch plans that they had; it felt right. It did. Magnus then nodded to himself and stepped closer to the restaurant, looking through the window of it, just in case if…  _ Asmodeus was there.  _ Magnus noticed him sitting at the back, but he was there and Magnus sighed in relief. Okay, good, he came. Honestly, Magnus didn’t know what he should get himself ready for, but Asmodeus was there and he smiled and then finally stepped inside of the restaurant. 

As soon as Magnus stepped inside of the restaurant, Asmodeus noticed him right away as he was also waiting for his son, smiling as Magnus finally showed up and Asmodeus took in a deep breath, his smile widening and he waved over to Magnus, who stepped over to the waiter that took him over to Asmodeus’ desk - Asmodeus made reservations, you see. Asmodeus didn’t invite him to just any restaurant in town, it was expensive and rather fancy. He just wanted the best for Magnus, really putting in a work and Magnus appreciated that. That and his father had expensive taste, he knew that and he just smiled, nodding over to the waiter that walked away.

“Hi,” said Magnus happily and then sat on the opposite side of his father, who had a bright smile on his face and Magnus just made a little pause and then hummed. Yep, it was definitely different feel now that it was just them and he cleared his throat. “Sorry, I hope I didn’t kept you waiting for too long, but you know how it is,” said Magnus, shaking his head. “When you’re in a hurry, there’s no cabs around,” said Magnus and Asmodeus just nodded and gave him a little smile. 

“Oh, I get it,” said Asmodeus and then waved it off. “No need to apologise, I got here early just because I wanted to be here when you came, didn’t want to keep you waiting. Again,” said Asmodeus, obviously talking about the Saturday dinner and Magnus just gulped and then nodded. Asmodeus then clasped his hands together and smiled. “I’m glad that you decided to meet up with me again,” said Asmodeus because he was afriad that he wasted his chance. Sure, he ended up showing up at the dinner and Magnus was happy to spend the time with him over there, but still - he felt horrible and terrible about it. He knew that if it wasn’t for Alec he would end up breaking another promise and that made him guilty. As hell. He needed to let Magnus know that it was Alec that got him over to that dinner, swallowing thickly and just as he was about to speak up, the waiter walked over to the two of them to take their order.

* * *

“Theo, I’m hungry,” whined Alec and Underhill glanced up at him, rolling his eyes. The two of them were now sharing an office and it was quite a nice experience, actually. Alec did like having his own place over at Imogen’s place, but it was also very boring and he was glad that his friend was over there. Again, Luke was an amazing boss that made it happen and he just whined again, trying to get Underhill’s attention, who just snorted, but didn’t look up on purpose. “Theo,” he whined again and in the end Underhill glanced up when Alec threw a pencil over to him, but missed on purpose of course. He just wanted Underhill’s attention and Underhill bit his lip.

“Yes?” asked Underhill, holding back his laughter.

“I told you - I’m hungry,” said Alec and then straightened himself up on his chair. “Come on, let’s go grab something to eat,” said Alec and Underhill rubbed the back of his neck, shaking his head. 

“Would love to, but I have a lot of work to do right now,” said Underhill and Alec groaned. Again. “Oh, come on. How about if you ask Magnus? You two usually go out for a lunch break together,” suggested Underhill. He was going to make it in time for a lunch break, but not as early as Alec wanted because from the sound of it, he was literally starving and Underhill was laughing under his breath because Alec again rolled his eyes and was just in complete despair.

“Magnus is busy today, he’s meeting his dad,” said Alec and Underhill nodded. Right, he did mention that before and he just pressed his lips together. “Jace is busy as is Izzy,” said Alec sadly and he shook his head. “I have no one to keep me company, everyone has abandoned me. I don’t wanna go out alone and I also don’t wanna stay here and order something,” said Alec. “I wanna go eat like a human being, to a restaurant or-”

“I’ll be done in like half an hour,” said Underhill and Alec pouted a little bit. “If you can think you can hold out that long without food, I’ll go with you,” said Underhill in the end and Alec just nodded. He could wait out that much, he wasn’t a child. He gave Underhill an offended look and Underhill just started laughing. “So,” said Underhill and Alec perked up. “How did the dinner with Magnus’ father go over the weekend?” asked Underhill because he knew that it was happening. Magnus told him himself and Alec took in a deep breath and just rubbed the back of his neck. “Not good?”

The look on Alec’s face was kind of confusing and Alec shrugged. “Okay, I suppose,” said Alec and then bit his lip. Even if Asmodeus did show up in the end, Alec still wasn’t a fan. He was going to need much more and he hoped that lunch that day was going to be okay. If not, Alec was going to call Asmodeus again. Also, he still didn’t tell Magnus that he called Asmodeus and he didn’t know if he should or not. He didn’t want to upset Magnus - maybe it would upset him if he found out that he only came over he gave him that call. Maybe that would give him a feeling that Asmodeus didn’t really show up because of Magnus, but because of- Alec also didn’t want to keep it hidden from Magnus because it wasn’t right and he just bit his lip. “The man’s a coward,” said Alec and shook his head. “He almost didn’t show up,” said Alec and shook his head.

“Oh, that sucks,” said Underhill and Alec nodded.

“I know, but thank God that he showed up or I would find him and just… I don’t know. Kick his ass,” said Alec because he could still remember the anger that he felt that day and when he thought about Asmodeus not showing up, he would get angry again, so it was probably for the best if he didn’t dwell on it too much. “I hope that he means what he says this time, I really do. Magnus has been put through enough crap,” said Alec and Underhill nodded; he knew all of it. And he hoped that Alec was right. After all, Magnus was his friend and he didn’t want his friend to get hurt again. He had a feeling that if the man was about to hurt his son again that he’d help Alec with kicking Asmodeus' ass.

* * *

Magnus smiled and then took in a deep breath. Lunch with Asmodeus was going quite well, they were talking and sharing things. Magnus told him more what he was up to the last few years, how he met Alec and how he changed his life for the better. Asmodeus was just listening to his son, more or less and was nodding along. He was glad that the boy was in his son’s life, he was a lot better than his ex wife. Asmodeus still couldn’t believe that he didn’t show up to his son’s wedding, he wasn’t there for his divorce, he truly was the worst human being. “This is really nice,” said Magnus and he tapped the sides of his mouth with the napkin and then smiled. He had just finished his main course and he was wondering if he had enough space in his tummy for one little desert. Oh, who was he kidding? There was always space for something yummy. Oh, maybe panna cotta. Mmm, he would-

“Yes, they do have the best food in town,” said Asmodeus and Magnus smiled. While it was true that he was thinking about the food, he was talking about them meeting up and just chatting and getting along for a change. They were in there for almost an hour and they didn’t get into a fight. It was just them and they managed to stay civil. Magnus smiled and then chuckled.

“It’s true,” said Magnus. “But I was kind of referring to the two of us getting along,” said Magnus and winked. Asmodeus glanced down and quickly nodded. Of course that was what Magnus was referring to. Asmodeus took in a deep breath and then he just clasped his hands together, placing them on top of the table and then smiled as he brought his gaze up again and hummed in agreement.

“It truly is,” said Asmodeus and smiled.

“Look at us,” said Magnus and Asmodeus arched his brow. “Sharing a meal and not arguing,” said Magnus and then hummed happily. “We’ve come such a long way,” said Magnus and Asmodeus glanced down. Magnus was trying to keep the mood light, but Asmodeus again felt guilt piling on because he knew that he was the reason that the two of them would get into a fight.

“I’m really sorry,” blurted out Asmodeus and Magnus cocked his head to the side. “I mean,” said Asmodeus and then bit his lip. “In the past I was kind of the reason why we would always fight,” said Asmodeus and honestly the frankness in his voice caught Magnus off guard and he slowly nodded and looked around the restaurant. He did say that he wanted to have a more private and serious conversation with his father, but was it really already happening? His father truly didn’t take his time and Magnus was glad about it, but also surprised because this wasn’t the Asmodeus that he knew and it still threw him off at times how much he had changed. Well, he was working on it. 

“Yeah,” said Magnus and puffed his cheeks. “Can-can I ask you something?” asked Magnus and Asmodeus nodded. “Don’t take it the wrong way, I just,” said Magnus and felt his heart fastening a little bit. “Why, um, why-” he started, his voice trailing off and Asmodeus narrowed his eyes. He could tell that Magnus nervous as hell and he bit his lip. God, his own son was afraid of asking him a simple question. “I-I mean I kind of got the impression,” said Magnus again and Asmodeus nodded. “Compared to Morgan and Madeline,” said Magnus, bringing up his two half sisters and Asmodeus also tensed up and he knew what Magnus was going to ask him. “Why have you always made such a great difference between them and me?” asked Magnus and then glanced down. His heart dropped and so did Asmodeus’. 

“I-”

“And please give me an honest answer,” said Magnus and Asmodeus bit his lip. “It’s okay, I can handle it, I won’t hold it against you. I kind of worked through it. I mean it still hurts, but well, I can’t change the past and neither can you. But I still need to know,” said Magnus and Asmodeus didn’t speak up for a while. “I mean I could get it when they were younger and they needed you more than me, but-but I also needed my father and-” he started and shook his head. “I don’t know, I always had an impression that I was just a bother to you,” said Magnus and Asmodeus shook his head.

“You were never a bother,” said Asmodeus and Magnus smiled sadly. 

“But?”

“I don’t have any excuse for treating you like that,” said Asmodeus and shook his head. “ _ I was going through a lot at the time and I guess I was just trying to ignore all things from that hard bit of my life, _ ” said Asmodeus to himself, but didn’t say it out loud because it was yet another excuse. The reality was- “It’s because I am a shitty person. I was going through a lot and I just wanted to focus on my new life. This doesn't excuse for how I treated you. There's no excuse for that other than the fact that I was aterrible father and a horrible human being,” said Asmodeus in the end and Magnus puffed his cheeks. Well, wasn’t that a truth. “Magnus, I’m sorry for ever making you feel like I didn’t love you or,” said Asmodeus and Magnus didn’t look up. “I’m sorry, that’s all I can do now. I know,” said Asmodeus. “I wasn’t there when you needed me. I wasn’t there for your recital at school, I know how much it meant to you,” said Asmodeus, shaking his head. “I wasn’t there for your wedding nor for your divorce, when you most needed me. I’m the-”

“Wait, you remember that?” asked Magnus suddenly and Asmodeus arched his brow. “The recital.”

“Of course I do,” said Asmodeus and shook his head. “I’m so sorry, I know...” he started and then shook his head. His father still remembered about that! That meant a lot to him. “Ragnor recorded it all and sent the video to me,” said Asmodeus and Magnus looked up and then his jaw dropped. “You were amazing,” said Asmodeus and Magnus’ bit his lower lip and placed his hand over his chest. That was all he needed at the time and he sniffled, feeling kind of misty-eyed.

“That sounds like Ragnor, yes,” said Magnus and laughed, shaking his head. Ragnor did that? “Thank you, that-that means a lot,” said Magnus and bit his lip.

“Of course,” said Asmodeus. “You have amazing friends, Magnus,” said Asmodeus and Magnus nodded. “And the boy you love, Alec, he’s amazing too,” said Asmodeus. “If it wasn’t for him, we wouldn’t be having this lunch right now. I don’t think I would even show up over at the Lightwood house for the dinner,” said Asmodeus in the end because he needed to get it off of his chest and Magnus cocked his head to the side. Wait, what?

“What do you mean?”

“Well,” said Asmodeus and then took in a deep breath. Fuck, he was despicable human being. “I was so afraid, I was on my way there, but then the client called and I drove back home,” said Asmodeus. “I was so embarrassed, I couldn’t… well, a coward,” said Asmodeus and Magnus was just listening, his heart beating fast. “After your phone call, I,” said Asmodeus and shook his head. “Again tried to get my ass over there, but I-” said Asmodeus. “I was on my way, but was still hesitating and Alec then called me,” said Asmodeus and glanced down. “Boy, was he angry. He did say some things to me that made me realise what a piece of shit I was being,” said Asmodeus. “It’s good that he called,” said Asmodeus and Magnus gulped. “I needed that push.”

“Alec called you?”

“Yes,” said Magnus. “But I didn’t come because of him, but because of you,” said Asmodeus quickly. “I did need that though. He put me in my shoes and, well,” said Asmodeus and Magnus nodded. He had no idea Alec called his father. “One is not to mess with Alec Lightwood, though, when he’s protecting the person he loves,” said Asmodeus and glanced at Magnus. “He truly loves you,” said Asmodeus and Magnus bit his lip and his heart warmed up.  _ Alexander called his father? Nobody… Camille would never!  _ And Alec was just-

“Alexander is amazing,” said Magnus and Asmodeus nodded. The thought that Asmodeus came over to the dinner only because of Alec crossed his mind, but it left in a second and he smiled, taking in a deep breath. He believed his father this time and he bit his lip. He couldn’t wait to be home, though, he needed to hug his boyfriend for being so amazing and supportive. Always there for him!

* * *

The first thing that Magnus did after he came back home was hug Alec and gave him a long, long kiss. Alec didn’t really get what was happening, but he figured that the lunch plans with Asmodeus went well and he was glad about it. He smiled and kissed Magnus back, who quickly sat on top of his legs, nestling into Alec’s lap and Alec wrapped his arms around him. “Alexander, you’re amazing. I love you so much, you’re literally the best person and I am so grateful to you. You’ve done so much for me and I just… love you so much,” said Magnus and then kissed him again. Alec didn’t really know what was happening, but he happily kissed the other back, humming.

“Not that I’m complaining, but what did I do?” asked Alec and Magnus chuckled.

“My father told me about the call,” said Magnus and Alec glanced down.  _ Ah.  _ He wasn’t angry though? 

“Oh, that,” said Alec. “Yeah, I couldn’t stand back and just watch it happen anymore. I’m sorry, I should have told you, maybe I overstepped the lines, but I had to do something. He hurt you more than once and I just-” he started, but Magnus shook his head and then kissed his nose. Right, Magnus wasn’t angry… oh!

“Thank you,” said Magnus and pressed his forehead against Alec’s. “Nobody apart from my friends ever reached out to me. Camille would never, I mean she would probably just tell me to get over it,” said Magnus and then bit his lip. “But you, you cared so much that you went ahead and called my father. I… this means so much, thank you so much. I really… I really love you so much, Alexander. Truly I do, you’re the best,” said Magnus and Alec just cupped Magnus’ face.

“I’m really not,” said Alec sheepishly and then chuckled. “I just think you deserve the world,” said Alec and Magnus gasped. “The whole universe actually and-” he started, but he didn’t get to finish as Magnus attacked his lips again. 

_ He loved Alec so much.  _


	33. Chapter 33

Magnus was shopping for a tux to wear over to Isabelle’s wedding. Alec decided to go with the same one that he went over to Jace’s wedding; he went through hell with all the shopping the last time so he wasn’t going to shop again. It was a new tux and he wasn’t meaning to switch things up, it just wasn’t his style. But he knew for a fact that Magnus was going to go for an extensive shopping because he really wanted something new. He liked having a few combinations and all of his old ones seemed worn out. He needed something new - fresh, a new start. He needed something and because he loved shopping, he wasn’t even going contemplate if it was wise or not to go shopping again. He had a lot of tuxes, but the more the merrier, right? Magnus was very much of that kind of an opinion and it was good to get out of the loft a little bit and just spend some time that wasn’t emotionally packed. The last few weeks were very emotional and as much as Magnus liked that he and his father were patching things up, he needed something that was fun and not stressful. No hard and heavy emotions, no nothing.

Just him, in the store together with Alexander. Yes, he managed to talk Alec into going with him. Truth be told, Alec wasn’t too keen on it at first because shopping was just something that he never really got and enjoyed, but he respected Magnus loving it. However, his mind was immediately changed when Magnus mentioned that he was shopping for a new tux and he swallowed because for that he needed to be there; he would be such a fool to miss out on such an amazing opportunity because he loved seeing Magnus in a tux. He looked amazing in everything, but tux was just something that made Alec… drool in particularly. He got to see Magnus in a tux on Jace’s wedding and on the wedding that they attended a little while back and both of the times he was just swallowing Magnus with this eyes because  _ damn.  _

Magnus was surprised by the sudden change of heart that Alec had, but he quite quickly realised why his boyfriend was so keen on going with him. As soon as he started trying on different styles, Alec was just sitting there and enjoying the show. Alec was drooling all the way through and Magnus loved the way that Alec was looking at him; his hungry and dark gaze upon him always got him, made his heart shudder and he liked the attention very much so even after Alec offered to go grab a few more different options, even though Magnus didn’t quite think that they were his style, he agreed on that and allowed Alec to have his fun. Besides, it was fun dressing up and posing for Alec, while he was just enjoying all the show - it was quite a turn on. For both of them.

Magnus was smiling as he was back in the changing room as he was going to try out a new tux that Alec had brought over for him and to be honest, that seemed like a right one. The trousers were black and tightly fitted around the waist, pairing it up with a black button up shirt underneath and he put on the dark blue printed blazer, that was also very tightly fitted and he liked the floral decor that was going on around there. It was a different kind of a tux, he didn’t have that kind yet and he truly liked it. Alec had a good eye for things for a change and he appreciated how he looked in it. Magnus straightened himself up and started checking himself out in the mirror, buttoning up the blazer and he glanced towards the curtain.

“You sure you don’t wanna join me in here with trying out a few things?” asked Magnus and Alec bit his lips and just shook his head. “I mean it would be fun - you trying out a few things,” said Magnus and Alec just shook his head again because he wasn’t of the same opinion. They’ve been at the store for two hours at least, but time really flew and Alec was completely amazed because he was having so much fun. Not to mention that Magnus looked so good in everything and he was indeed just drooling as they went along and he cleared his throat because he couldn’t wait to see Magnus in the next thing that he picked out for him. Something told him that he was going to look even more amazing as he did per usual and he felt his heart fastening a little bit.

“I’m pretty sure, Magnus, it’s too much work for me, truly is,” said Alec and he smiled when he heard Magnus chuckling in there. Was he soon going to be out there? Alec wondered how he looked and he just shook his head a little bit, trying to get his mind out of the gutter. He also liked their little trip down to the mall, it was good for a change to be just having fun and not focus on anything serious. They truly needed that and he smiled softly. “Also, the one that I have for Jace’s wedding has been worn only once and I don’t think I need a new one,” said Alec and then nodded. 

“Okay, okay,” said Magnus and then shook his head with a smile. “But you know, if you change your mind, I’ll be more than glad to help you out pick the right one for you,” said Magnus and Alec just nodded and his eyes widened when he heard Magnus’ gasp from in there.  _ Yes, did he like he?  _ Did he do a good job? “Oh, my,” said Magnus as he spun around and his eyes had literal hearts in his eyes. The outfit was gorgeous as it was, but now that he was wearing it, it was stunning and he smiled. Woah! “It’s gorgeous,” said Magnus and Alec grinned.

“Yeah?”

“Yes, you’ve done an amazing job with this one, Alexander,” said Magnus proudly and Alec bit his lip. He needed to see Magnus in it and take a few photos - for science, you see. He needed to see it happen and he grinned.

“Come on, show it off then,” said Alec and then sat back and rubbed his palms together. “I can’t wait to see you,” he said and Magnus just laughed, rolling his eyes and he popped his head out from behind the curtain and Alec whined impatiently. He was taking too much time, he wanted to behold! “Magnus, stop stalling,” whined Alec and Magnus just nodded, slowly opening up the curtain and he then stepped outside, finally and Alec’s jaw hit the floor because  _ holy shit he looked so hot in that and Alec couldn’t believe actually just how good Magnus looked in it!  _

“Not too shabby, huh?” asked Magnus, spinning around and Alec’s eyes immediately dropped to the back and Magnus’ ass looked amazing in those tight pants. It was perfect and he was in trance when Magnus turned around to face him again and he chuckled. “Angel, my eyes are up here,” said Magnus and started laughing when he saw Alec’s flush forming upon his cheeks.

“S-sorry,” said Alec and dragged his tongue over his lower lip. 

“Don’t be, I don’t mind the attention at all,” said Magnus and Alec slowly stood up. He needed to see the outfit up close… for science, again, yes, yes. Alec swallowed thickly, his eyes travelling up and down Magnus’ body and he was just nodding, humming along. Wow, it truly did wonders for his already amazing body and Alec shuddered when he saw just how amazing Magnus’ arms looked like that. Oh, fuck, he always had a weakness for them and he swallowed thickly, again having a hard time on focusing. What was he about to say just now? It was hard to focus indeed! 

“I do like you in a tux, I mean wow,” said Alec, his voice low and husky. The way that he said it made Magnus’ hunger grow as well. Alec’s eyes darkened even more, glancing over Magnus, his eyes flickering all around and Magnus had to hold back a moan from escaping past his lips. He was weak to Alec’s gaze; Alec’s hungry look always made him weak in the knees and he just cleared his throat because it was hard not to jump Alec right there, kiss him hard. He wanted to feel Alec’s strong hands explore his body, tear off his clothes, then ram him against the- Magnus quickly snapped back to reality and he looked up at Alec, who was also feeling kind of hot all around and he dragged his teeth over his lower lip. 

“Alexander,” said Magnus and cleared his throat. His voice was an octave lower as well and he had to focus really hard on what he was going to say next. “Wanna help me take this off?” asked Magnus and Alec quickly looked down. “It-it’s hard to get it off, I mean the pants are really tight and on my own, I-” he started, but he didn’t have to say much more because Alec totally followed and he just nodded.

“Sounds serious,” said Alec and Magnus snorted, but quickly nodded. “I’ll, um, I’ll help you,” said Alec and quickly followed Magnus inside of the changing room. As soon as they were inside of it, Magnus covered it with the curtain and then lightly pinned Alec against the wall. Both of them were breathing fast and uneven and before they knew it, they were kissing. They didn’t know who started kissing each other first, their brains were a mush and Magnus held back his moan as Alec kissed him for the second time, feeling Alec’s hand behind his back, bringing his closer again and Magnus just smiled into their kiss.

Fuck. They were in public, but-

There was a voice screaming at Alec somewhere in the back of his head that they shouldn’t go too far, it was still a public place, but he decided to not listen it for the time being because he loved Magnus pressing him against the wall and the store was pretty much empty, so-  _ Magnus bit his lower lip.  _ “Oh, God,” slipped past Alec’s lips and he reached down with his hands, slowly moving them over Magnus’ broad shoulders and he shuddered. Oh, God, his arms were so firm and hard, so perfect and- 

Magnus slowly shuddered when he felt Alec’s hands travelling around his body and he took in a hitched breath and he just kissed Alec with more desperation and hunger, feeling Alec’s arms sliding down his back and he just pressed against Alec harder, groaning when he felt Alec’s hands cupping his ass - Alec was not shy at all and he loved it. Magnus’ hands were fisting the collar of Alec’s shirt, slowly starting to lift it up, but he knew that they really shouldn’t to-

“Magnus, fuck,” groaned Alec and Magnus forced himself to glue himself off of Alec, who was just standing there, clothes looking dishevelled, his lips slightly puffed and he shook his head. Oh, right, what was he- “The loft?” asked Alec and Magnus breathlessly laughed and nodded.

“Y-yeah, let me just get dressed back. I’ll pay for these and-”

“No, leave them on,” said Alec and Magnus arched a brow. “I wanna take them off,” said Alec and the way he said it made Magnus shudder and he just nodded. Oh, fuck, yes! He was going to have to make a good excuse for why he was leaving the store dressed in them, but it was going to be so worth it!

* * *

“Oh, God,” moaned Alec out and started laughing because that was an amazing… ride. Damn, Magnus really took him for an amazing ride indeed and Magnus was sheepishly grinning on top of him, his legs feeling wobbly and he slowly unstraddled Alexander, sinking down against the mattress and he glanced up at the ceiling, taking in a deep breath and he then just hummed. Oh, wow, that was amazing - who would have thought that Alec liked seeing him in a tux that much? Magnus knew that he fancied him all dressed up, but  _ damn.  _ If he knew, he’d take him shopping a long time ago and he just giggled because next time he wanted to take Alec shopping for some sexy underwear and his eyes lit up.

“I… yep, very nice it was,” said Magnus because he still couldn’t really string together coherent sentences and he hummed, slowly rolling onto his side and he smiled when he felt Alec placing a kiss against his forehead. “Mmm, you’ve enjoyed yourself properly, have you?” asked Magnus and winked. Alec flushed a little bit and he just glanced around the room, his flush deepening when he saw the state of it. 

The painting that Magnus had hanging on the wall was crooked, clothes tossed all over the room and he just glanced back at Magnus, who was just laughing. Oh, now he was acting all bashful and shy? Yeah, sure, sure, but before he was more than happy to tell him how and where he wanted it. Uh, huh. “I… phew,” said Alec and both of them started laughing. “Seeing you in a tux always makes me feel things,” said Alec and Magnus snorted. “Sorry, I wasn’t too rough, was I?” asked Alec and Magnus quickly shook his head.

“Oh, no,” said Magnus and hummed. “It was just amazing, I feel great,” he said, extending his arms out, stretching out his back and Alec giggled; he was like a kitten, stretching cutely and he just bit his lip. Magnus was too adorable. “I need to take you shopping with me again,” said Magnus and Alec’s eyes lit up and he quickly nodded. “Next time you’ll be trying things on, though. I want a little show as well,” he said with a wink and Alec hummed - he didn’t know about that.

“I’m not really-”

“What if I say that the next shopping session will involve shopping for something a lot sexier than just a tux?” asked Magnus and Alec’s eyes widened and he was already thinking about things that they could be shopping for and Magnus started laughing because Alec was literally the easiest person to persuade into doing something.  _ Amazing.  _ “Wanna see you slip into some sexy underwear,” said Magnus and waggled his eyebrows. “I could do the same and-” he started, but Alec interrupted him.

“Okay, when can we go?” asked Alec seriously and Magnus just started laughing because Alec was hilarious. Instead of responding, he pulled Alec in for another kiss and Alec didn’t really complain. Kissing Magnus was always a win in his book.

* * *

“Okay, but for real, when are you proposing?” asked Ragnor seriously and Alec’s jaw dropped when the sudden question came. Magnus and Alec were spending some time with Magnus’ friends - they were having a lovely evening out, but then Magnus decided to go order them another round of drinks and as soon as Magnus disappeared from the table, Ragnor decided to ask Lightwood the most important question.  _ He needed to know, he had everything ready for the wedding!  _ Catarina started laughing next to him and Raphael just rolled his eyes.

“Alec, don’t listen to him,” said Raphael and shook his head. “He’s gotten it into his head that he wants to plan your wedding and now he’s like… obsessed with it,” said Raphael and again rolled his eyes. It was getting on his nerves and Alec just took in a deep breath and then laughed. Yes? He didn’t know what he was supposed to say? He was thinking about it… maybe, eventually, to propose, but he wasn’t sure if Magnus was ready to go down that road again. It didn’t really matter if they were married or not, as long as they were together.

“Um, I-”

“Raphael’s right,” said Cat. “Don’t listen to Ragnor. I’ve told you, it’s none of your business,” said Catarina and massaged her temples. Not only that it was annoying, but it was also very invasive and Ragnor just decided that he was going to sulk.  _ How rude, he didn’t mean it like that.  _ He was just curious! “Just… ignore him, really. Don’t pressure Alec, Ragnor,” said Catarina and Alec in the end just smiled and shook his head. It wasn’t the first time that he was asked that; Izzy and Jace had also brought it up a few times, but Alec was just-

“Oh, no, it’s okay, there’s no pressure,” said Alec and smiled.

“See, Alec is chill, unlike you two,” said Ragnor and then pouted. “I didn’t mean anything bad with it anyway,” he said.

“I know,” said Alec. “And honestly, the thought did cross my mind,” said Alec slowly and looked over to Magnus, who was finally with the bartender and was telling him their order. Ragnor’s eyes grew - everyone was surprised and happy to hear that. “But,” said Alec. “Do you think Magnus would be down to get married again?” asked Alec. “I mean after that first attempt, it’s kind of… I would understand if he didn’t wanna get into it again,” said Alec and Ragnor just nodded because he was more than sure that Magnus would be into it. After all; Magnus was a sucker for happy, fairytale endings and with Alec he could actually have it. For real! “I mean after all marriage isn’t really… it’s more of a symbol, but not the main part of love,” said Alec and shrugged. “I’d love to propose, but only if he’d be comfortable with it. If not, it’s completely okay. I’m the happiest as long as I get to be with Magnus,” said Alec. 

When Alec said that, Catarina gasped, Ragnor sighed and Raphael smiled - what did he say now? Oh, did he say something weird? He really didn’t mean to- He didn’t know what was going on and he just smiled nervously. “That’s… you love Magnus so much,” said Catarina and Alec nodded.

“Um, yes, I don’t-”

“It’s just,” said Catarina and smiled. “You’re always putting Magnus first, never want to make him feel uncomfortable. And let me just tell you, Magnus will be very interested in marrying you. While it’s true that the witch cursed his belief in marriage the first time around, I think that you managed to make him believe in the magic of them,” said Catarina and smiled. The other two agreed - Alec was truly amazing and Alec didn’t even know what he said… but he was glad that he did. In a way. 

“I don’t get it, truly, but Magnus is a very romantic person,” said Raphael. He wasn’t very keen on weddings himself.

“Hopeless romantic,” said Ragnor and Alec smiled softly. “Going into this business of wedding planning, it was just,” said Ragnor and puffed his cheeks. “I was there when he changed platforms, from party planning, to weddings,” said Ragnor and smiled. “He just went into it trying to spread love to other people, he’s really innocent in many ways. His belief in true love,” said Ragnor and smiled. “It’s really something special but then that Camille tainted that part of him,” said Ragnor and bit his lip. “She destroyed that innocent view he had of love,” said Ragnor.

“Yeah, truly, she is the worst,” said Raphael. 

“But you made Magnus believe in true love again and all of that,” said Catarina and bit her lip. Alec flushed a little and looked at Magnus, who was coming back.  _ He did that?  _ Alec smiled and then grinned. Magnus was a hopeless romantic for sure and he was just… it was adorable and he deserved to be happy. True love, it was true if it was with Magnus. And only him. “Thank you,” said Catarina and Alec just smiled and quickly snapped back to reality when Magnus came back. 

Everyone was quiet and he arched a brow. “What happened while I was-”

“Marry this guy,” said Ragnor and Magnus chuckled. 

“If you won’t, we will,” said Catarina jokingly and everyone started laughing, Magnus wrapped his arms around his boyfriend and he pulled him closer.

“Hey, hey, if anyone’s marrying this guy, it’s gonna be me. He’s mine,” said Magnus, waggling his eyebrows and Alec just smiled as he kissed Magnus again. 


	34. Chapter 34

Magnus was picking Max from school; Magnus finished work earlier that day and because everyone else was pretty busy, he decided to volunteer to pick Max up, calling Maryse and Robert, who were happy about the news because job was keeping them both busy that day and Magnus was happy to spend some time with Max, he was an amazing company. Also, just the day before that he bought a new game and he wanted to show it off to Max. It was lots of fun playing video games with Alec’s little brother. Alec didn’t like video games very much and even when they would play, Alec would get bored pretty quickly on. It was either that or he would get kind of frustrated because Alec wasn’t what one would consider a good gamer. He was decent at best, but Magnus loved playing with him. And the few times that he got to play with Alec, they were lots of fun, always letting him win and Alec knew that. Alec didn’t mind it, it made him smile, but still!

But gaming with Max was fun; the new game that he got was a racing one and he was looking forward to play it with Max. However, when he picked up the other one, Max seemed to be feeling kind of… sad? He couldn’t really tell because Magnus could tell that Max was trying to play it off that everything was okay, but when Max thought that Magnus wasn’t looking, he could see that the smile would fade away from his lips. Even after he told him the big news of getting the new game, Max didn’t really seem too excited about it so something had to happen. Perhaps in school, Magnus couldn’t tell, but he felt for the boy and he hoped that he could somehow figure out what was wrong so that he could cheer him up, but it didn't seem like Max interested in talking about it. 

There they were, sitting in silence and Magnus just cleared his throat. Max snapped back to reality, put on a happy smile and Magnus bit his lip. Did he feel like he needed to pretend that everything was okay in front of him? Max should know that he didn’t have to hide how he truly felt in front of Magnus. Magnus was always there, ready to listen and Max usually didn’t hide things, so whatever it was, it had to be serious? Oh, it worried Magnus, but he still didn’t want to approach too… rough. With kids one needed to go slow and given that Max was almost a teenager, he also needed to keep in mind that he didn’t talk down to Max. He needed to make him feel like he wasn’t a child. It was important to kids his age; Magnus could remember it from when he was a kid, though he was always spoken to like he was an adult. He had to be always mature for his age.

Magnus shook his head and then smiled, clasping his hands together. “Okay, in the mood for some food?” asked Magnus and Max just shrugged and then shook his head. After the day he had, he really wasn’t in the mood to be eating and he just puffed his cheeks, Magnus cocking his head to the side. “No? Not hungry?” asked Magnus and Max just shook his head. “Ah, you had to have lunch then, right?” asked Mangus, trying to figure out what was wrong.  _ Or at least get Max to talk and forget about whatever was on his mind.  _ But it didn’t seem to be working really well. 

“No, wasn’t hungry in school either,” mumbled Max because he didn’t really want to lie too much and Magnus’ eyes widened. Okay, so Max had to be hungry, but he was just refusing to eat? Magnus didn’t get it and he just took in a deep breath and he clasped his hands together. “How about if we just play that game that you got?” asked Max, trying to sound happy and Magnus wanted to nod, but it didn’t feel right.  _ Suppressing feelings, he had done it for years.  _ It was usually always better to deal with it and because something had to happen in school, it worried Magnus. Was Max being bullied? That was kind of the first thing that he could think of and, yes, he was probably projecting a bit too much because he was bullied when he was Max’s age. He just hoped that it wasn’t that.

“We’ll get to the game, don’t worry, we still have time,” said Magnus and Max arched his brow. So they wouldn’t play right away? “I still think that maybe you should eat something first. I’m kind of starving myself, so how about I order us something?” asked Magnus and because Max wasn’t in the mood to argue, especially not with Magnus he just nodded. Magnus just smiled and nodded, calling the usual pizza place and he ordered them two pizzas, making sure that he got Max’s favourite one. 

As Magnus was on the phone, he noticed a little smile on Max’s lips when he told the woman his order; Magnus made sure that he ordered his favourite one and that kind of made the boy feel a little bit better, but he was still pretty down. It wasn’t his day at all, it was really a long day. “There, the nice lady told me that the pizzas will be over in fifteen minutes,” said Magnus happily and Max smiled softly and nodded.

“Thank you,” said the boy and then made a little pause. “I am kind of hungry actually.”

“Of course you are, you’ve had nothing to eat since breakfast, no wonder that you’re in such a bad mood,” said Magnus and Max snorted because Magnus sounded a lot like Robert at the time, but the smile soon disappeared because Magnus could notice that he wasn’t in a good mood? Well, that was kind of easy to spot and he just bit his lip, glancing down. “But I guess that’s not the main reason for the long face, is it?” asked Magnus and eventually Max just shook his head and Magnus gave him a little nod. “Though so, wanna tell me what happened?”

“No,” said Max and Magnus arched his brow. Oh, no! When he was being bullied he also didn’t want to tell people what happened! And his friends asked him more than once, but he would always deny it, telling them that everything was okay and that worried Magnus! A lot. 

“Okay, I get it,” said Magnus and Max looked up at him. “Just so you know, if some of your classmates or other kids at school are being mean and trying to order you around, you shouldn’t… you should tell someone,” said Magnus and Max’s eyes widened. “Trust me for personal experiences, it’s better to confide in an adult,” said Magnus and Max quickly realised what Magnus thought happened. He quickly shook his head and Magnus cocked his head to the side. 

“I’m not being bullied, that’s not what happened,” said Max and Magnus sighed out in relief.

“Thank goodness,” said Magnus and then took in a deep breath. “What happened then? Oh, right, I said that you don’t have to tell me if it’s-”

“I got a bad grade,” said Max finally and Magnus bit his lip. Oh, that was all that happened? But then he had to remind himself that Max was still young so he probably didn’t get bad grades yet. It was true, Max was pretty good when it came to school, while Magnus… he didn’t really have a perfect score when it came to school. He did well enough, never really cared about grades. As long as he passed, he was happy with it. “Teacher graded our tests today and I got an F,” he carried on and Magnus gave him a little smile and gently gave him a pat on the back. It was okay, it wasn’t the end of the world.

“Aw, Max, I’m sorry,” said Magnus and Max just shrugged. “But, hey, it’s okay. It happens to all, even to the best,” said Magnus and Max nodded. He knew that, but he still felt bad about it. “You shouldn’t worry too much, Maryse and Robert are going to be cool about it,” said Magnus and Max nodded. Oh, telling his parents wasn’t the reason for his bad mood, he knew that it was going to be easy telling them. They were chill and cool like that, but he felt really disappointed. In himself.

“I know, I’m just disappointed,” said Max sadly and Magnus finally realised why he felt so bad. “I studied a lot and I still failed,” said the boy and took in a deep breath. “I’m usually really good in Math, I don’t know what happened this time,” said Max and Magnus gave him a little smile and then shrugged.

“It happens, sometimes,” said Magnus and Max slumped down onto the couch. “Aw, don’t be so hard on yourself. It truly does happen to all of us. Also, Math is evil,” said Magnus and Max finally cracked a little smile. “But,” said Magnus. “You’ll do better job next time, you’ll see. This is just… we all learn from mistakes. You saw what the teacher expects from you in the test, so when you’ll be re-doing your test, you’ll know which things to be careful of and you’ll focus more on those when studying and it’ll be all good,” said Magnus and Max pressed his lips together.

“Oh, I didn’t think of it like that,” mumbled Max and Magnus gave him a little nod.

“And if you’d like, I can ask my friend Catarina to help you with Math. She tutored me all through high school, without her I wouldn’t have passed any of the exams,” said Magnus and Max perked up.  _ Really?  _ Oh, he didn’t know he could have a tutor. He liked Catarina, she was cool! She was even cooler now in her eyes for being so good at Math and he nodded after a little while.

“I would like that,” said Max in the end and Magnus gave him a little smile.

“You see?” asked Magnus and Max nodded. “It’s okay not to be perfect all the time. Don’t be so hard on yourself, I mean it,” said Magnus and then made another pause. “Now, let’s forget about the evil Math,” said Magnus and Max quickly nodded. Yes, he had a point! “Pizza will soon be here and then we can play the game,” said Magnus and Max’s eyes lit up.  _ Good!  _ Magnus was happy to see Max in higher spirits!

“Get ready to get your butt kicked,” said Max.

“Bold of you to assume that you’ll win,” said Magnus and they both started laughing.

* * *

“Yes, I win again!” cheered Max happily and it was the first thing that Alec heard when he stepped inside of the loft and his smile widened, taking in a deep breath as he was taking off his jacket. The two of them were still playing and were so into it that they didn’t even hear and see Alec stepped inside of the loft. “What does that make it? I think I win four times and you… three?” asked Max and Magnus nodded, grinning. Max was feeling a lot better and he was beating Magnus! And Magnus wasn’t even letting him win like he did with Alec. Oh, he needed to get better at it! 

“No need to brag about it. You need to stay humble no matter if you win or lose,” said Magnus and Max just stuck his tongue out and Magnus chuckled softly. 

“You’re just saying this because you’re losing,” said Max and Alec was laughing, slowly going over to the living room, but he was watching the two of them from the door and he didn’t quite step inside yet, he wanted to observe the two of them for a bit longer and his smile was growing. “Yes, yes, face it, Magnus, I’m awesome,” said Max and Magnus stuck his tongue out then and Max giggled. “Very mature,” teased Max and Magnus just shrugged.

“If you get to do it, I don’t know why I can’t,” said Magnus simply.

“You’re an adult, I’m a kid,” said Max.

“Ah, yes, of course, it makes sense,” said Magnus and Max giggled again. He was having a lot of fun; the bad grade was completely forgotten and he was happy that Magnus was the one that picked him up that day, huffing under his breath. “But, let’s go one more round and see who will win,” said Magnus because he was very competitive even if he was playing with a kid and Max arched his brow.

“Want to eat my dust again?” joked Max and Magnus snorted.

“Watch and learn, I will win this time,” said Magnus, but before he was able to press play, Alec finally stepped inside and let them know that he was back home. Magnus smiled when he saw his boyfriend coming closer to the two of them and Max smiled as well. Alec shook his head, laughing and he leaned down closer to Magnus, kissing his lips softly. A  _ welcome back at home kiss was the sweetest in Alec’s opinion.  _ Coming back home from a long day. Ah! Nothing better than that!

“I see you two are having a lot of fun,” said Alec and looked around the living room. There were boxes of pizza lying around and he could see that Max and Magnus decided to order a cake too? Oh, was it a celebration of something? Alec was intrigued. “What happened in here?” asked Alec and chuckled. Magnus smiled and then glanced at Max, who bit his lip, but then decided to just tell his brother what happened. He changed his opinion on the grade that he got and he didn’t feel as bad anymore. 

“Pizza party?” asked Magnus cutely and Alec giggled.

“And you two didn’t wait for me to come back home?” asked Alec. “Started having fun all on your own. Hurts, how mean,” said Alec and Max chuckled. He was happy to see Magnus covering up for him, but he wasn’t going to lie about it. It didn’t feel right and he just opened his mouth.

“I got an F today in Math today. Pizza party was there to make me feel better,” said Max and Alec’s eyes widened. “It helped. As did kicking Magnus’ butt when we were playing,” he said, waggling his eyebrows and Magnus narrowed his eyes.

“Remain humble, young man,” reminded him Magnus.

“Oh, of course, oh grand master,” said Max and Magnus started laughing as did Alec; the two of them were adorable. But what was that about Max’s bad grade?

“You okay?” asked Alec softly. “I know grades are important to you,” said Alec and Max held in his breath, but nodded eventually.

“Yeah,” said Max. “I’ll just re-do a test, not the end of the world,” said Max proudly and Magnus smiled. “I shouldn’t be too hard on myself, Magnus taught me that,” said Max and Alec beamed. It was true, he was glad that Max seemed calm about it. Shit happened. “Also Catarina is my Math tutor now,” said Max.

“Oh, that’s so cool, you have a tutor!” said Alec and Max chuckled and nodded. Yes, it was cool, wasn’t it? Max decided to go and grab himself some juice from Magnus’ fridge, which gave Alec the perfect opportunity to sit down next to Magnus and he gave him a long kiss. “Thank you for cheering Max up,” said Alec and Magnus just nodded.

“Of course,” said Magnus happily. “He was feeling so down, I’m glad he’s happy now.”

“Thanks to you,” said Alec and waggled his eyebrows. 

“Oh, I didn’t do much,” said Magnus and then smiled, Alec kissing him softly and then pulled away, both happily sighing and Alec was intrigued by the game that was set up on Magnus’ TV. 

“New game?” asked Alec.

“Indeed, Max kicked my ass at it four times,” said Magnus and Alec chuckled.

“Can I try?”

“Really?” asked Magnus and Alec nodded. “Oh, let’s do a round then,” said Magnus happily, Alec rubbing his palms together and he picked up the controller. Max came back and when he saw his brother getting ready to start playing a game, his jaw dropped to the floor.  _ Oh, this was going to be great!  _ Magnus was going to kick his butt completely! But he quite quickly realised that Magnus didn’t go all out when he played with his brother. He was clearly letting him win and he just started laughing.

Love made adults do strange things.

  
  
  



	35. Chapter 35

Magnus nervously huffed under his breath and rubbed his palms together as he was waiting for his sisters to join him in the room. Magnus hadn’t seen them in a long time and even when they all lived together, he was… they didn’t really have a good relationship, it was always strained. They didn’t have much in common because Magnus was that much older, but that wasn’t the only reason, of course not, it was just an excuse Magnus liked using when he was rationalising it to himself. He just didn’t want to get close to them because Asmodeus was always picking them over him and he just didn’t want to like them. It wasn’t their fault, of course not and Magnus just huffed under his breath and he took in a deep breath. But as he was trying to reconnect with his family, he agreed to meet them. Not just them, but also their mother. He had been always distant to them, never got too close and sometimes he was so cold to them.  _ Too cold.  _

Magnus knew that he was at fault, he knew all of that, but at the time he just couldn’t deal with letting other people in. He was too hurt from everything, he would have given them a chance if Asmodeus wouldn’t treat them like this. But, in his eyes, at the time they didn’t really deserve the attention and his affection. Never too close with his sisters, but their mother was always nothing but kind to him and he did feel like a dick for being like that to her. Her and his father seemed happy, his father deserved a new chance in finding love. Clearly he and his mother didn’t work out, which happened and it was  _ okay.  _ But, Magnus was young at the time and hurting way too much to realise  _ that.  _

Luckily, he had grown a lot since then. He wasn’t perfect, he never claimed that he was. He was a flawed human being, just like all the rest and he just put on a little smile and cleared his throat. It was weird coming back to this house, truly it was so weird. The last time that he was there things weren’t good and he just bit his lip and then nodded. Yep, but this time it was going to be okay. He was pretty sure in it and he just needed to keep his mind and heart open. He owed them that much and he was getting lost in reliving some of the past things when the door of the living room finally opened and he smiled. It wasn’t his sisters, but it was their mother and he cleared his throat.

It definitely was weird to see her again. Magnus let himself inside before because Asmodeus told him to do so. His father was currently coming back from work and after it they were all going to catch up and talk. Not that Magnus minded it, but he wanted that Asmodeus was there to break the ice. Magnus didn’t really know what to do or say really and he just cleared his throat, standing up and he gave the woman a little smile and then rubbed his palms together. “Um, yes, hi,” said Magnus and he swallowed thickly. Where were his sisters? They didn’t want to come out and meet him? Or were they just as nervous as him? 

“Hello, Magnus,” said Karen, the girls’ mother and Magnus just gave her a little smile and shook her hand. So formal indeed, but he really didn’t know what to do more than that. It would be too weird if he went in for a hug and he knew that she also had her boundaries. Magnus wasn’t very kind to her in the past and he hoped that she was going to forgive him. She was a forgiving person from what Magnus knew; if she stayed with his father for all those years, then she had to be. Even though they loved each other, they’ve been together through some hard times, Magnus knew it all too well. His father was a tough person to get along with at times and he glanced around the room.

“It’s good to see you again,” said Magnus, withdrawing his hand and the other nodded with a little smile.

“It is a pleasant surprise that you decided to visit us,” she said and Magnus held in his breath and eventually he just nodded. “We’re all very happy that you decided to pay us a visit,” she carried on, speaking slowly and carefully and Magnus could feel that she was trying to stay… lighthearted. Both of them knew that they weren’t exactly on good terms and Magnus was going to have to apologise  _ properly  _ for that. 

“Yep,” said Magnus and then bit his lip. “Just trying to make amends with everyone,” he said and rubbed the back of his neck. “I, um, not gonna lie, it wasn’t easy to come here. There’s happened so much between us and I’m, um, I just want us to turn a new leaf,” said Magnus and Karen nodded. 

“I would like that as well,” she said and Magnus forced a little smile. 

“Dad’s on his way home,” said Magnus and Karen nodded.

“Yeah, he called me, telling me that he’s going to be a bit late,” said Karen and Magnus nodded again and then bit his lip. What was he supposed to say next? Ugh, this was so awkward. Maybe he should have taken Alec with him after all, but he didn’t want him to get involved in his family drama in case that something happened. Besides, it was for the best if he went alone, they needed to talk about things in private setting and he just bit his lip. 

“It’s so weird being back here,” escaped past Magnus’ lips and Karen smiled.

“Yes?” she asked and Magnus’ heart shook a bit.

“Just, um, many memories,” said Magnus and Karen nodded.

“I’m sorry,” she said because she knew that they were painful ones. 

“No, um, it’s fine,” said Magnus and then waved it off. “Where are Morgan and Madeline?” asked Magnus after a little while because there was still that annoying silence between him and Karen and she chuckled and glanced onto the door behind her and she shook her head because she knew that her two daughters were standing behind the door and listening to their conversation. 

“Probably standing behind the door and listening,” said Karen and glanced back to Magnus. He glanced over to the door and arched his brow. “They’re both very nervous, but excited to see you visiting us again,” she said and then nodded. “Also, scared a bit and-” she started, but then the whispering from behind the door was finally being heard and she stopped talking, shaking her head and she chuckled. Magnus huffed under his breath and then he nodded. Okay, they were there and were as nervous as he was! That wasn’t really a surprise. 

“Oh,” said Magnus. That was all that left past his mouth.

“I’ll go get them,” said Karen and Magnus just nodded, taking in a deep breath and then he watched her walk over to the door and he just nodded. Okay, yes, it was going to be okay! It was all going to be just fine! Magnus waited patiently and he smiled when he listened the woman and the girls whisper over at the other side of the door. He couldn’t really make out what they were saying, but still. And as they finally decided to join him in the living room as well, he quickly smiled again and his eyes widened a little bit. It’s just been a while and they’ve really changed.  _ Grown up.  _

The older girl, Madeline, took in a deep breath and stepped closer to Magnus. She was indeed quite nervous and Magnus bit his lip and gave her a little smile. “H-hi,” she stuttered and Magnus gave her a little nod, glancing over at Morgan, who was just nervously smiling and he gave her a little smile. “It’s nice to see you again,” she said and Magnus nodded as well.

“Yeah,” said Magnus in the end and cleared his throat. “It’s been too long,” he added on and the girls both nodded. Oh, who was he kidding, they weren’t girls anymore, but women. Grown ups. Damn, time really flew and he really should have- Madeline wanted to shake his hand, but in the end Magnus decided that that was too formal and broke the ice, finally. Instead of shaking their hands, he gave them a hug each… which he didn’t think he gave them in a long time and Karen was standing by the door, smiling as she watched them.

Good, the ice was broken, maybe things would be easier now. She knew that being reconnected with their brother meant a lot to their girls and she could tell that it meant a lot to Magnus as well. Maybe they could finally all just make amends. It would be a nice start.

* * *

“Oh, I remember this one,” said Magnus and pointed to the photo in the album and his sisters started laughing. It was indeed an old photo, Magnus was around sixteen on it and it was the time of Halloween. Magnus was in charge of his sisters that year, he was taking them out to trick or treat and he could remember that at the time he thought it was the lamest thing ever. At the one one of his sisters was eight and the other was six, so it kind of made sense. Magnus just wanted to go out and party, but he got stuck with them. But it turned out to be quite a good time; it was one of the rare occasions that he got to really enjoy spending time with them and it only hit him then that he shouldn’t have pulled away. But soon after that the whole incident with the school recital happened and the rest was history. It was hard for Magnus to let it go after that.

“You were so grumpy,” said Madeline and glanced over to the photo. On it, Magnus was dressed as a cat, she was dressed as a princess and her younger sister was a pumpkin. The evening was truly a fond memory of them all and she just sighed happily. “Well, now I can relate, I bet you wanted to go out with Ragnor and Cat and just let loose and have fun, huh?” asked Madeline and Magnus just started laughing. 

“Well, yeah, but I’m glad that I didn’t, it was lots of fun,” said Magnus in the end.

“Yes, I can remember too,” said Morgan and Magnus glanced over at her and smiled, nodding. “We ended up getting so much candy,” she carried on and Magnus chuckled. The inner child of her was still very much alive and kicking. Truly, she was always bubbly and happy, while Madeline was more on the shy side of it all and Magnus just hummed and then nodded.

“Yes, we got it for weeks to come,” said Magnus and then hummed. “It was a lot of fun. Sadly I kind of started pulling away after that again. I was kind of a dick to both of you in my teen years, wasn’t I?” asked Magnus and his half-sisters glanced at each other and they just shrugged.

“It’s okay, truly, we get it now,” said Madeline.

“Yeah, it’s fine. I know that things couldn’t have been easy on you,” said Morgan and Magnus took in a deep breath and he nodded. “Papa wasn’t always there for you,” said Morgan and Magnus bit his lip and then shrugged. “It’s okay, we’ve told them that he was a dick to you,” said Morgan and Magnus chuckled and then sighed. He was happy at the moment, truly. It was good to be catching up like this.

They were sitting in the dining room; Asmodeus was home and the dinner went okay. They spent a lot of time just talking to each other; they all needed it and in the end they managed to forgive each other. Magnus was really happy that he came to the dinner; he was afraid at the beginning, but it was nice to see all of them. He held in his breath and then glanced over at his sisters again. Asmodeus and Karen were in the kitchen, cleaning everything up and were going to be joining them back in there in a few moments. 

“Yeah, but it’s fine now, he’s changed,” said Magnus and Madeline nodded.

“Good,” said Madeline. “I’m happy you came. I… we’ve missed you so much,” she said and Magnus’ eyes widened.

“Really?”

“Are you kidding?” asked Morgan and Magnus just shrugged. He didn’t really think that he’d be missed. “You’re like the coolest brother ever,” she said and Magnus chuckled, but then shook his head. He wasn’t… cool, but he was flattered that they thought of him like that. “Dude, don’t sell yourself short, you’re so cool,” said Morgan and Magnus snorted.

“It was hard to live up to your reputation in high school,” she said and Magnus chuckled, but he didn’t understand what kind of reputation they were on about? “As you know I was also in the drama department and they were all… just… expecting so much when they found out I’m your sister,” said Madeline and Magnus was in awe.

“Oh, wow,” said Magnus.

“Trust us, you’re cool,” said Morgan and Magnus just chuckled.

“Well, so you are,” said Magnus and the girls chuckled. “An aspiring lawyer and a professional dancer,” said Magnus and winked over to his sisters, who just smiled and waved it off. “No, I mean it, I’m proud of both of you,” said Magnus and then took in a deep breath. Yep, this was good, it was amazing if he was being honest and none of this wouldn’t be happening without Alec’s help. Truly. If he didn’t make that phone call- 

“And how about you? A cool career and an amazing man in your life,” said Madeline and waggled her eyebrows. Magnus chuckled and then nodded because indeed… he was an amazing man. 

“When can we meet him?” asked Morgan and Magnus started laughing. “Hey, we’ve only seen him on pictures,” she said, complaining, but in a very joking kind of way and Magnus arched his brow. “And may I just say that… damn,” said Morgan and waggled her eyebrows. “I mean he’s so tall and handsome, how is he even real?” she carried on and Magnus was laughing again.

“Have you been stalking my social media?”

“Guilty,” said both of them and Magnus started laughing. 

“Next time I come here, I’ll take Alexander with me,” said Magnus softly and the other two happily smiled and nodded. “It… I want you to meet him, yes, he’s been wonderful to me,” said Magnus softly and his sisters nodded. They didn’t meet him yet, but they liked him better than his ex; Camille. They met her on more than one occasion and she always found a way to put them down… either for their looks or how they dressed. It was Morgan especially that butted her head with Camille; she was so happy that she was completely out of Magnus’ life.

“That’s great,” said Madeline and Magnus nodded.

“Yes, yes it truly is, isn’t it?” asked Magnus and happily sighed. 

* * *

Magnus was in a very good mood when he came back home that day, he was really happy that he decided to pluck up the courage and finally go visit the rest of his family. And when Alec saw his boyfriend coming back home with a huge smile on his face, he figured that Magnus had a nice time over there - he was happy about that. He was very happy that Magnus found it within him to move forward, forget what happened in the past and was now focusing on really just… being happier. Karen made Magnus take a lot of leftovers over to his loft, so Alec had a pretty yummy dinner that day as well, eating happily as he was chatting with Magnus, who was sitting on the other side of the table in their dining room and Magnus was really glowing.

“Truly, I had a good time,” said Magnus and shook his head. “Next time, you’ll come with me as well, right?” asked Magnus and Alec happily nodded. Oh, of course! He was very excited to go; he wanted to go this time as well, but Magnus expressed the wish of going alone, so he listened, of course he did. “Good, because my sisters are very excited to meet you, they’ve been stalking _ you _ and me on social media for a while now,” said Magnus and Alec’s eyes widened.

“Me?” asked Alec with his mouth full and Magnus chuckled.

“Yeah, they’re very curious,” said Magnus and laughed.

“Ah,” said Alec and smiled. “Well, if Karen will make another yummy dinner like this, I’m inviting myself over, because yum,” said Alec, pointing down to his plate and Magnus laughed and nodded with a smile. “Seriously, so good, I’ve been starving,” said Alec and Magnus continued laughing. Alec was adorable. As always really. 

“You know,” said Magnus and Alec cocked his head to the side. “None of this wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for you making that phone call to my dad that day,” said Magnus and Alec bit his lip and he didn’t really want to say that Magnus was right, but he probably had a point. If he didn’t make that call pressuring Asmodeus into coming, then it probably be a disaster and Alec honestly didn’t want to think of that. Still, he didn’t want himself to be given all of the credits, he just pushed a few things along and he just shrugged, tapping the sides of his lips with a napkin when he was done and he just took in a deep breath.

“You should give yourself credit too, you know, it takes courage,” said Alec in the end and Magnus just hummed and then nodded

“Enough about me,” said Magnus and Alec chuckled. Magnus was talking about himself for the past hour and he wanted to hear how Alec’s day was. “How about you? What’s new?” asked Magnus. “Work was okay?” asked Magnus softly and Alec nodded. Yep, work was okay everyday since he started working at Luke’s company. But that day was especially good because they had a meeting with  _ Imogen _ of all people and it was just amazing, truly. Alec did feel bad for her in a way, but at the same time not really.

“Oh, it was fun,” said Alec and Magnus saw a little devious smile spreading across Alec’s face.

“Do tell,” said Magnus.

“We had a meeting. With Imogen!”

“No!” exclaimed Magnus with a gasp.

“Oh, yes, and it was marvelous,” said Alec and Magnus was cackling. “It wasn’t even… gosh, they’re completely lost without me and Underhill there and I heard that a few people quit soon after we did and it’s just… she does have new people working for her, but they’re just… I feel for them,” said Alec. They were all young and from the looks of it they were all terrified of the woman. She didn’t listen to his advice at all. Pity. 

“Oh, gosh,” said Magnus and shook his head. “She’ll never learn, will she?”

“Doubt it,” said Alec and then rubbed the back of his neck. “The best part of it all was how she was looking at me during the meeting,” said Alec and Magnus arched his brow.  _ How was she looking at him? Angry or-  _ ‘’Like a sad ex who is regretting of ever letting me go,” said Alec in the end and Magnus started laughing. 

“Oh my God, that’s gold,” said Magnus and Alec nodded. Oh, it was, he was loving it during the meeting and he just sighed because it felt good that he wasn’t with the woman anymore. Alec leaned back against his chair and then hummed happily. He was much happier and so was Magnus; they came a long way since meeting each other, always growing - side by side with each other. 


	36. Chapter 36

Magnus was in a pretty amazing mood; he and Alexander were going out to celebrate their nine month anniversary and a part of him still couldn’t believe that so much had passed since the two of them had gotten officially together. It was almost a year from Jace’s wedding. Heck, Izzy’s wedding was happening next month! It was supposed to happen earlier, but then it kind of got pushed back a little bit as there had been a few complications when it came to the planning process. As it turned out, Isabelle was unhappy with the choices that the person that was planning her wedding and in the end Magnus decided to take it all into his hands because he wanted to make Izzy’s wishes come true. And he was more than happy to do it; he and Izzy had a very similar taste and it was a pity that they didn’t really start planning the wedding from the beginning together. But, at least they got to that point and everything was going smoothly. 

Still, time flew past so fast and it was still a mystery to Magnus  _ how _ . But then again, the time that he spent with Alexander was amazing, so it was no wonder, truly. He was looking forward to this dinner. Magnus was the one that prepared their date for their eight month anniversary and Alec wanted to be the one to prepare their date this time and he decided to agree; he wanted to be surprised. After all, Alexander was also a romantic soul and he was very excited about it. It was Friday and it was at that day that he got a very mysterious note (not really because he could recognise the writing; it was Alec’s) on his desk (delivered there by no other than Ragnor, of course), telling him to be ready at eight o’clock.

Oh, it was all so hush-hush and it was making Magnus to be very excited. He did go all out for their anniversary last month, but it was nothing compared to what he had planned. Alexander… Magnus was truly in awe because he didn’t know what to expect. He wanted to drive himself over to the restaurant that Alexander told him to meet him at, but he didn’t have to. Alec got that bit covered as well as he somehow managed to get a driver to drive him over to the restaurant and Magnus was just…  _ this was almost too much for just a celebration of their anniversary, no?  _

Magnus didn’t think of it too much at the beginning, but he was starting to get a little bit… excited? The driver, the expensive restaurant that they arrived at - it was all just so extra and special. Alec wasn’t really known for that; fancy restaurants, he liked to keep it simple, so that gave Magnus an impression that maybe something more was going on and there were just so many questions popping up in his head, but there was one that made his heart beat extra fast. Yes, he and Alexander were together for a while now. Nine months, it was kind of a big milestone, but it wasn’t a year  _ yet.  _ But, all of this made Magnus to believe that maybe Alec was going to propose? Maybe? Magnus wasn’t sure, but it’s been brought up every now and then and he didn’t think of it too much at the time, but now that he was actually sitting in the car, too nervous to step out of it, the reality started kicking in and he just took in a deep breath.

Magnus got out of the car and smiled as he glanced around. Oh, yes, he knew the restaurant well; he had mentioned to Alec once or twice how much he loved it, but he couldn’t afford it many times because their menu was expensive as hell. Expensive, but so worth it and he bit his lip, taking in a deep breath. Yeah, if Alec wasn’t planning on doing anything  _ extra _ that evening, then they wouldn’t be having dinner there… right? Magnus didn’t know, but he was just standing there in front of the door and he needed a little while to calm down. He was nervous as hell, but excited because if that was what Alec was really planning on doing that day Magnus was… oh, gosh, he was so excited! But he wasn’t so sure that proposal was happening, so he shouldn’t be getting his hopes up! Right, he was very known for doing that, but he just couldn’t help it - he was a very excitable person and he chewed on his lip.

“Okay, I must not leave Alexander waiting for too long,” said Magnus, taking in a deep breath and he then stepped inside of the restaurant, his heart beating fast. Oh, Magnus was so ready to put a ring on Alec’s finger for a while now, but he was just too nervous to ask. Magnus didn’t know if it would be a good time or not. Proposing again made him anxious, but being proposed to he didn’t mind. It was very strange, yes, but it was how he felt and he just rubbed his palms together and took in a deep breath. 

How funny how much he changed in just a year? A year ago he would never be so sure that he would want to get married ever again - he hated just the concept of marriage, he couldn’t stand it. To him it was all just a lie. Marriage meant a temporary happiness and then a heartbreak that lasted for the eternity. At least to Magnus at the time, but he completely changed about that and he was just so happy. Oh, seeing Alexander getting down on one knee and asking him the question made Magnus want to scream  _ I do _ before the two of them had even gotten to the meal.

Alec was nowhere to be seen, so Magnus decided to step over to the reception desk - yes, where was Alec, anyway? Magnus was glancing around while he waited for a waiter to come over to him and take him to their table, but Alec was nowhere to be seen and that was kind of strange to Magnus, but before he was able to start worrying about that, an older woman stepped over to him and gave him a big smile. Magnus smiled back and spoke up. “Um, yes, hi, I-”

“Mister Bane, how lovely it is for you to finally join us,” she said and Magnus’ jaw dropped -  _ she knew who he was?  _ Wait, did Alec- “Yes, just follow me, there’s a special place and a table for you and your plus one,” she said and gave him a little wink. Magnus nodded and then cleared his throat, but didn’t really know what was happening. He just followed her in silence and he honestly didn’t know where she was taking him because he dined there a few times and he had heard about the special rooms - the VIP rooms, if you will - that they kept for their extra guests in the back. So, imagine his surprise when he realised that that was exactly where she was taking him.

“Wait, we’re going back to the VIP rooms, like for real?” blurted Magnus out and the woman giggled.

“The person making reservations here at our restaurant was very specific with his order,” said the woman and Magnus was just in awe - he really didn’t know what to think because that was really over the top.  _ Just how much did Alec spend on him?  _ An anniversary wasn’t worth it. For God’s sake, it was really a proposal, was it? Magnus bit his lip and he was sweating again. Oh, gosh, oh, gosh, he was so excited that he could barely contain himself and he then cleared his throat. “Yeah, it does sound like Alexander,” said Magnus and the woman didn’t say much, but the little smile on her face made him wonder even more… just what was going to happen? Oh, this was too much for him to handle!

* * *

Alec was walking up and down, nervously waiting for Magnus. He was supposed to be there by then, no? Oh, maybe the driver didn’t come? Magnus didn’t really send him any texts and Alec was biting on his lip because he didn’t know what to think. Was it too much? Was it too… maybe he should be the one picking Magnus up and bringing him over here. Of course he should have done that! Alec listened to Magnus’ friends, who told him that Magnus would like this sort of a thing, so he decided to go all out and he just organised a driver to bring Magnus, but he was beginning to worry that maybe it was too tacky? He wasn’t the one to send drivers and… it wasn’t like him! 

Alec took in a deep breath again.

Okay, he was too nervous, everything was going to be okay. Magnus liked romance and this was romantic what he had planned for them, but he was still nervous as hell. He was checking himself in his phone, fixing his hair over and over again, walking around the table and he was just not making himself nervous, but also the waiters around him and he apologised for what felt like the tenth time and he just shook his head. He knew that he was being way too nervous about it, but it was a very big deal for him! He just hoped that Magnus was going to like the surprise.

Alec liked it as well, it was very romantic, he like the atmosphere in there and he didn’t care if he paid a bit extra, it was all worth it because he was going to make sure Magnus was going to remember all of it. He was going to make this the most special day of his life, well he was hoping that he was going to achieve that. Luck wasn’t really known to be on his side when it came to romantic things, but he was very determined; nothing was going to ruin this. It was all going to be just perfect and when the door opened, Alec’s heart jumped up to his throat and he let out a loud gasp.  _ Magnus was there and he loved breathtaking.  _

A waiter stepped over to him; the main one that was going to be serving them and he whistled softly. “That’s him?” he whispered and Alec nodded happily.

“Oh, yes,” said Alec.

“Damn,” he said and Alec started laughing, but then he nodded. 

“I know, I’m lucky,” said Alec and then rubbed his palms together. “Wish me good luck, dude, I’ll need it today,” he said and earned himself thumbs up from the waiter and he quickly walked over to Magnus, who was looking around the room.  _ Wow, it was just so amazing.  _ It was just a room for the two of them, there was a soft, classical music playing in the back and just everything about it seemed just so expensive. Heck, Magnus felt expensive being there and he just shook his head, laughing and then he walked over to Alec, who was happily standing over by the table. Oh, there were lovely flowers on it!

“Alexander, what even-” started Magnus and Alec nervously laughed.

“Surprise,” said Alec, or almost sang it out and Magnus nodded.

“Oh, consider me very surprised, Alexander,” said Magnus and then leaned up, kissing his boyfriend, giving him a long kiss and he beamed as he was glancing up at him after the two of them pulled away from each other. “I mean this is just… everything is so amazing, Alexander,” said Magnus and Alec giggled happily. “You really shouldn’t have, I mean I know how much it all is expensi-”

“Shhh,” said Alec quickly and Magnus arched a brow.

“Alec?”

“Let’s not focus on that, focus on how pretty it all is,” said Alec and slid his arms down, wrapping them around Magnus and he pulled him closer. “I wanted it to be special, it is our anniversary after all,” said Alec, his voice shaking a little bit and he was hoping that he didn’t give it away too soon. Magnus narrowed his eyes and hummed - it was just an anniversary, he said? Magnus wasn’t so sure, but if Alec said that it was, then-

“All of that for just an anniversary?” asked Magnus and Alec nodded. “The mysterious note, the driver and now the special room for the two of us in my favourite restaurant?” asked Magnus and Alec just nodded. Magnus was studying Alec’s face and he didn’t even flinch about it. Okay, so maybe it wasn’t a proposal after all? Magnus felt a bit deflated, he wasn’t going to lie, but he was still going to enjoy the evening! “You really shouldn’t-”

“Nonsense,” said Alec. “Let me treat you nice,” said Alec and waggled his eyebrows. Magnus flushed a little bit and he glanced down, looking back up and he cupped Alec’s face and he kissed Alec softly.

“Aw, you always treat me nice, Alexander. Amazing, you’re always amazing to me,” said Magnus and Alec just murmured a quiet  _ I love you  _ before he gained himself another kiss. 

Their waiter was standing there and just watching and listening to all of it and was touched to the point that he couldn’t really force himself to start working, not until his co-worker stepped over to him and scolded him for staring at their customers. “ _ I can’t help it, Sarah, don’t you see how cute they are together? They give me such feels, I want them to adopt me, _ ” heard Magnus and Alec in the back and while Alec’s jaw hit the floor, Magnus started laughing out loud because that was… he liked their waiter for the day.

* * *

Magnus was having a lot of fun on their dinner date. He kind of managed to forget about the whole proposal thing that he had thought of before and he was just smiling, eating yummy food, sipping on delicious wine and spending time with Alexander - it was the most perfect anniversary ever and he was just so…  _ he loved Alexander so much.  _ Alec was also very happy to see Magnus have so much fun; his boyfriend was literally glowing with happiness and so was Alec. All of the people working in there were amazing, they brought out food as it was planned; it was truly a magical evening and Alec was slowly preparing for the main event. He just hoped that Magnus was going to like the surprise, because it was a big one. After the dinner he was planning to take Magnus around the restaurant, they had a little terrace and he also planned a little something there. With the help of all of his friends and siblings!

“Alexander, today has truly been so special,” said Magnus softly and Alec nodded happily. “Truly, I can’t believe the last time I’ve felt so fancy,” said Magnus and then reached over the table to hold Alec’s hand and Alec chuckled softly and then he nodded. 

“Same goes for me,” said Alec and Magnus winked.

“By the way, you also look yummy in a tux,” said Magnus, flirting his way through and Alec giggled.

“Thanks,” said Alec. Oh, he was again kind of nervous and he cleared his throat. The two of them had just finished with the last dish, which was the dessert - yummy chocolate cake and now Alec was slowly take Magnus out onto the terrace. There weren’t any customers there that evening, it was just going to be the two of them.  _ Alec was going all out, he was going to finally pop the question and he was going to give Magnus the proposal that was out of this world.  _ So romantic and just perfect!

“M-hmm, this is the best cake I’ve ever had,” said Magnus and Alec chuckled. He still had his piece and he was feeling really full, glancing down and he smiled.

“Wanna eat mine as well?” offered Alec and Magnus’ eyes lit up.

“Oh, I can’t, Alexander, you need to taste how yummy it is,” said Magnus, but his eyes couldn’t lie - he wanted to eat more of it. Alec took a small bite of it and hummed. Truly yummy, indeed, but what was going to make Alec even happier was to watch Magnus eat all of it up. He was adorable when paired up yummy treats. 

“It’s out of this world, but I’m really full,” said Alec and Magnus giggled.

“Well, if you are really, then I can’t really say no, can I? It would be such a waste to return it back to the kitchen.”

“Exactly,” said Alec and then glanced down.  _ Oh, he kind of wanted to do something, he’d seen it in all of the movies!  _ Alec took another piece of cake onto his little fork and then he brought it over the table and Magnus’ eyes widened when he realised it that Alec was going to feed him essentially? The corners of his lips curled up and he took in a deep breath.

“Really?” asked Magnus and Alec flushed.

“I’m sorry, is it too much?” asked Alec, his cheeks bright red and Magnus hummed.

“Kinda, yeah. But I’ll let you on a little secret - Too Much is my middle name,” said Magnus, Alec laughing and he smiled as Mangus in the end still leaned forward and ate up the piece of cake, happily humming and Alec was the happiest person ever. Alexander looked like an excited puppy so Magnus allowed Alec to feed him all of the cake that there was left, the two of them holding hands all the way through, Magnus’ thumb caressing the back of Alec’s hand and Alec was just so happy! Oh, he couldn’t wait to go down on his knee and ask Mangus finally the question! It’s been on his mind for a while now and he was just-

Alec put a lot of thought into it, he wanted to be really sure. He didn’t want to rush into things so he asked Magnus every now and then how he felt about getting married again; he hoped that Magnus didn’t really get what he was planning, but he really wanted to be extra sure and after Magnus told him that he wouldn’t mind getting married to him again, Alec decided to put his plan into motion; Ragnor was very eager to help. Well, all of his friends and his siblings were more than excited and ready to help, but Ragnor was  _ extra _ motivated to help him out and finally everything was in place. Their anniversary was the perfect moment for Alec to pop up the question. At least in his opinion. He hoped Magnus wasn’t going to be too shocked! 

But he was going to be very respectful of any answer that he’d get!

“Mmm, what a perfect dinner it was,” said Magnus, sipping on his wine and Alec nodded, his heart getting again faster because he was finally getting ready to take Magnus onto the terrace and he cleared his throat. “What a lovely anniversary you’ve planned for us,” he said and Alec nodded and finally spoke up.

“Actually, this isn’t the end of it yet,” said Alec and finally stood up. Magnus arched his brow and then cocked his head to the side. “I h-have another thing planned up,” said Alec and Magnus perked up.  _ Could it be?  _ Oh, Magnus was praying that he wasn’t getting his hopes up again too much and that he was just imagining it because that would really be a bummer. Though what else could it be?

“Yes?”

“Yes,” said Alec, stepped over to him and handed him his hand.

“Oh, what a gentleman,” said Magnus and took Alec’s hand, allowing his boyfriend to pull him up on his legs and Magnus smiled. “Oh, we’re going somewhere?” asked Magnus and Alec nodded, guiding Magnus over to the terrace, his heart hammering like crazy and he couldn’t wait to finally pop the question. He was buzzing with excitement. 

“Yes, just follow me,” said Alec and Magnus grinned - he’s always follow Alec no matter where he’d go. Oh, was that too much also? Probably, but Magnus loved that thought and he was just smiling. 

“The terrace?” asked Magnus, kind of confused.

“Yes,” said Alec and nodded. “Okay, close your eyes now,” said Alec, acting kind of like a robot, but it was just because he was so freaking nervous and Magnus hummed.

“Why?” asked Magnus carefully, his heart hammering like crazy. 

_ Oh, it was happening, it was happening. _

Who was he even kidding, Magnus’ excitement was off the roof and he took in a deep breath. “Another surprise,” mumbled Alec and Magnus nodded, quickly closing his eyes and Alec smiled. “No peeking, okay?” asked Alec and Magnus just nodded.

“I won’t, I promise, don’t wanna spoil the surprise,” said Magnus and then glanced towards the terrace. “Kind of dark out there, isn’t it? Usually there’s lights and-” he started, but Alec quickly quited him down with a kiss and Magnus hummed and nodded.  _ Him blabbering around was a sign that he was nervous.  _ “Right, I should shut up now,” said Magnus and nodded. “Got it, carry on,” said Magnus, closing his eyes and Alec giggled and then finally told the staff of the restaurant to open up the door for him and as Magnus listened to all of the rumbling around, his heart was hammering.

_ Fuck, fuck, fuck. _

_ He wasn’t ready. _

_ He wasn’t ready. _

_ He so wasn’t ready. _

_ He was going to faint if he’d see Alec down on his knee! _

In silence, Alec took Magnus through the door, watching his every step because it was dark and the only thing that he could hear was the hammering of his own heart, taking in a deep breath and then he gave the staff another nod, the terrace slowly illuminating. There were little lights hanging above them; they were so pretty and he smiled. It was his idea, yes, asking the restaurant and they were more than glad to allow him to proceed with his idea. Ah, this was going to be romantic, he hoped that it was romantic. He then finally took out the little box out of his pocket and slowly got down onto his knee, slowly letting go off Magnus’ hand, who was literally shaking there. 

Something was happening.

“Alexander, I can’t-”

“Open your eyes,” said Alec slowly and Magnus slowly fluttered his eyes open, glancing around and he gasped when he saw Alec down on his knee. Oh, fuck, this was real, this was really happening, he didn’t- He looked up and saw the little lights above them and it was just so romantic. It was all he wanted and it was picture perfect, covering his mouth and Alec took in a deep breath. He got this whole speech ready, he memorised it well. He needed to express his love. “Magnus, from the day that we’ve-”

“I do, yes, let’s go,” said Magnus quickly and Alec’s jaw dropped.

“But I didn’t-”

“Yes, I wanna marry you,” said Magnus and felt tears well up in his eyes. This was all almost too much and Alec started laughing, quickly standing up and he cupped Magnus’ face when he saw that his eyes were looking misty. “I do, let’s get-”

“Magnus, I have this whole speech ready, I-”

“Speaking is overrated, Alexander, kiss me instead,” said Magnus, who was just so excited, standing there in Alec’s arms.  _ He wanted to hear the speech very much so indeed, but it could wait till bit later.  _ It finally registered Alec that Magnus said yes and he crushed their lips together. Magnus wanted to see the ring, too, but the first thing that he needed to do was to hug Alec for an extensive amount of time. 

“Yes,” said the waiter. He. Was. Ecstatic! “Did you see that, Sarah?! He said yes!”

“Yes, I see that, but don’t you think that we should-”

“They’re adorable,” said the waiter as he was being dragged away by his co-worker. “Relationship goals, I wish to have what they have one day too,” he whined and she gave him a little smile. 

She just met them, but what they had seemed amazing, genuine. “Me too,” she said, sighing happily. 

The whole universe could see how pure and amazing their love was. 

  
  



	37. Chapter 37

“Show me the ring again, honey,” hollered Magnus’ mother and Magnus smiled sheepishly into the camera and then he slowly lifted his hand up and showed the ring to his mother, who gasped because the engagement ring was gorgeous. It was just two days since Alec proposed and Magnus was now telling his mom all about it; he spent the previous day telling all about to his friends and his father, including his sisters and Karen. They were all very happy for him and Magnus giggled because it was really special ring, he loved it so much. It was simple and elegant, yet very special because Alec had engraved their initials on the inside of it.  _ A & M _ . It was so sweet. It was silver and it had a little blue diamond on the top of it. It was really special and Cintia was completely in awe. Magnus was just done telling her the story how he got proposed to and she was still in awe.

“It really is,” said Magnus and he happily sighed, shaking his head. “Alexander even went as far to have our initials engraved inside of it,” said Magnus and Cintia gasped again because that was so romantic, even more so. On the evening that Magnus got proposed to, he was really just ecstatic that he only noticed how pretty the ring was afterwards and he wouldn’t stop glancing at it. Magnus was now in the process of buying Alexander an engagement ring as well and he wanted to pick out something very special. Something that would compliment his ring in all the ways possible, but would still be Alec’s style. 

Ah, that really was an amazing evening, but Magnus realised that he was so all over the place at the time being that Alec didn’t get to tell him the speech that he had prepared for him and he had been wanting to hear it, but he didn’t really bring it up. Maybe he should have, he wanted to hear what Alec had planned to tell him. It was probably just another declaration of love, but Magnus could always need more of them. Oh, he was such an idiot to just jump Alec there and not allow him to finish his little speech. Ah, why was he so excitable?! And Alec said that he didn’t mind it really, but Magnus minded it and he just sighed, Cintia clearing her throat and Magnus finally snapped out of it.

“Did you hear what I said, honey?” asked Cintia and Magnus flushed a little bit.

“Sorry, not really,” he said and he glanced down, the woman grinning and she started laughing. “I was kind of reliving the proposal, I still can’t get over how perfect it was,” said Magnus and placed his hand over his chest and he bit into his lip, glancing up to the ceiling again. “Truly, yes, okay, but what did you say? I’m so sorry, I’m getting carried away,” said Magnus and his mother shook his head because he had nothing to apologise for. He had all the rights to be getting lost in his little fantasy world, because he was so happy and she couldn’t be happier for her son.

“Oh, don’t apologise, you deserve it,” said Cintia and gave her son a little wink. “But what I’ve been meaning to talk to you is that I’ll be coming down to New York in two weeks, I want to finally meet your man in person and we need to do a lot of catching up,” said Cintia and Magnus held in his breath.  _ Really, his mother was coming?  _ Now that made the whole even more special and he couldn’t hide his happiness, clapping and he just bit his lip. 

“You’re coming?” asked Magnus.

“Well, of course,” said Cintia and smiled. “I wouldn’t miss this for the world,” she said and Magnus was beaming back at the camera, nodding. “I want to be there for you,” she said and winked.

“This is amazing, then we can have our engagement party then,” said Magnus and Cintia cocked her head to the side. “I mean Alexander and I have been discussing, it wouldn’t be a lot, just family and friends,” said Magnus and she nodded. “But I wasn’t sure when it would have been the more appropriate time. I really wanted you to be able to attend it and-and now that you’re coming, it is going to be perfect,” said Magnus and Cintia smiled, nodding. That sounded amazing.

“That’s great, sweetie, I would like to meet your future in laws as well,” she said and Magnus smiled happily. There was only one little detail that he needed to mention to her; Asmodeus and the rest of the family were invited and attending as well. Magnus didn’t really know how she felt about them because the two of them didn’t really talk about it, but it seemed fair to him that she knew. “It is going to be lovely,” said Cintia and then sighed. “If you need a singer for your wedding, you know where to find me,” she then offered and Magnus perked up.

“Oh, my God, yes, I’ve been meaning to ask you,” said Magnus and Cintia smiled. “But we didn’t get to the planning part, though my friend Ragnor is really pestering me about it,” he said and shook his head, laughing. “He has it all planned already and while I do appreciate it, he is a bit too excited,” he said and Cintia started laughing because Magnus talked a lot about his friends and she knew Ragnor. They’ve met a few times and that did sound like him, giggling.

“I mean, that does sound like him,” she said and Magnus smiled, but a little nervous smile spread across his face. “Is there something wrong? You look kind of nervous,” said Cintia and Magnus puffed his cheeks. Ah, yes, he couldn’t hide anything from his mother, could he? Well, it was the best if he just came out and said it. He did mention to her that he and Asmodeus were reconnecting and that they got along. He also told her that he had changed a lot.

“Mom, I need to tell you something,” said Magnus and Cintia nodded.

“Okay?”

“Well, as you know, I and dad started hanging out again,” said Magnus and Cintia nodded slowly. “Well, this time he’s really trying and-and I’ve also reconnected with Karen and my sisters,” said Magnus and Cintia slowly nodded. Yes, she knew all of that, she didn’t get what was the big deal. She was happy that Magnus and the others got along. “I-I invited dad and them to the engagement party, I thought that it’s fair of you to know before you show up there,” said Magnus and Cintia have him a little smile.

“Oh, Magnus, you don’t have to worry about me, this is your special moment,” said Cintia. “You can invite whoever you want. Besides, you said that Asmodeus had changed, so that’s good. As long as he doesn’t hurt you ever again, it’s okay. I’ll be fine, we’ve parted ways years ago, I’m fine,” said Cintia and Magnus smiled. His mother was such an understanding person for real. “This is just about you, we will get along, don’t worry. It’s completely fine, he’s still your father and that will never change,” said Cintia slowly and Magnus nodded.

“Yeah,” said Magnus and his mother chuckled. He was happy that he had so much support down this road and he couldn’t believe that he and Alexander were getting married. They were engaged and he was just going to enjoy calling Alexander his  _ fiance _ , later husband and he was just so… in love. That was what he was and he just smiled, again going into his little fantasy world and Magnus’ mother started laughing again.

* * *

“Dude, you really did it,” said Jace and Alec gave his brother a little smile and a nod, happily biting into his lip because he still couldn’t believe that Magnus was now his fiance. Wow, he had really changed in a span of one year, giggling and he then glanced down. “I mean you’ll soon be getting married and you have me so much shit about getting married to Clary, remember?” asked Jace and Alec slowly nodded. “Saying that weddings were always overrated, but here you are,” said Jace and waggled his eyebrows.

“I’m so sorry for how I acted back then, I didn’t want to shit all over your happiness like this. You know I wasn’t over Josh at the time and it was just,” said Alec and shrugged. “I was just so bitter to allow others to happy, so I’m sorry about that,” he said because he didn’t like that he acted like that towards his brother, but Jace just waved it off because he could understand Alec at the time being. Josh used to be his friend and he attended Jace’s wedding, but now the two of them didn’t talk anymore. Jace ended friendship soon after the wedding - bringing his boyfriend like that to rub their happiness into Alec’s face. Ugly fucker. 

“It’s okay, really,” said Jace and bit his lip. “I mean at the end of the day, I shouldn’t have invited him to my wedding,” said Jace.

“Well he was your friend as well,” said Alec. “And you didn’t know that he was bringing his boyfriend, right?” asked Alec and Jace shook his head.

“Exactly. This is why we don’t speak anymore,” said Jace and shrugged. “It’s good that we’ve all moved on from him and now you’re happily in love with Magnus, it’s all good,” said Jace and Alec nodded. “So, there you see? No need to apologise, I get it. I would probably even worse if I was going through a breakup,” said Jace and gently rubbed Alec’s back, who nodded and in the end he just smiled. 

“Yes,” said Alec and then bit into his lip. “Now I get. I am into all of the romantic stuff that I was shitting all over,” said Alec and Jace nodded, snorting because he knew his brother all too well and he knew that Alec was deep down a very romantic person. He could tell it from how much he gave in relationships with his previous boyfriends.

“Duh,” said Jace and then sighed, leaning back against his chair.

“And I’m just so happy for Magnus, you know?” asked Alec and Jace glanced up at him. “That he’s reconnecting with his family and that all of them are getting along,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. Everything was perfect and he didn’t know why that was scaring him, almost? Maybe because luck wasn’t on his side usually? “It’s almost too good,” he said and Jace quickly shook his head because he knew what Alec was doing - it was like he was afraid to be happy? It was a weird thing that was always following Alec and Jace just wished that Alec would allow himself to be happy without being worried, but then again he could kind of understand where that fear was coming from.

“You’re not doing that, nope,” said Jace and Alec arched his brow.

“What?”

“Not allowing yourself to be happy,” said Jace and Alec bit his lip. Well, maybe he did have the tendency to do that and he just shrugged. “Come on, it’ll be all okay, you’ll see, so you should stop worrying too much, okay?” asked Jace and Alec gave him a little nod and he smiled.

“Thanks,” said Alec and Jace just shook his head.

“For?”

“Support.”

“Oh, you should know by now that I’ll always have your back, man,” said Jace and Alec just nodded. He knew that. Jace was always going to be there for him.

* * *

Magnus was on the search for the perfect engagement ring for Alexander and with the help of Izzy and his sisters he managed to find out the perfect one - it was elegant, simple and it was totally them. He also had their initials engraved to the inside of it because he thought that was such an amazing touch to it and he was finally ready to give it to Alexander. A week later since the proposal, but it was all ready and he was just so happy. He was trying to be very chill about it, but in the end he just ended up being quite obvious about it because he couldn’t really hide anything from Alec, who pretty much figured it out immediately.

“You’ve got me a ring as well, didn’t you?” asked Alec happily as he was reading the book and Magnus perked up and quickly looked around. Who told him?! Did… did Izzy spill their secret? But she promised and- “I can see it in your pocket. I mean it’s a box and I can just assume that it’s an engagement ring for me?” asked Alec. “That and you’re very jumpy,” said Alec with a smile and Magnus shuddered under his breath and in the end he just nodded because he couldn’t hide it anyway.

“Y-yeah,” stammered Magnus and then took in a deep breath. “S-sorry, I was meaning for the moment to be a bit more romantic, I mean I wanted to ask your out to a dinner or-”

“Magnus, this is more than perfect,” said Alec because he also wanted to see the engagement ring and Magnus took in a deep breath. “Also, you and Izzy were kind of sneaking around, I knew that something was up,” said Alec and then rubbed his palms together. “Come on, I wanna see it and wear it. I want others to know that you put a ring on it. Well, will anyway,” said Alec and Magnus chuckled sheepishly.

“Okay,” said Magnus in the end. He couldn’t wait for them to get over to the restaurant and there was no way that he could top Alec’s thing. Also he kind of didn’t want to, it was oficial anyway already so, it was just.. being there in their living room and just… giving the ring was more than perfect if he was being completely honest and he just took in a deep breath and slowly took out the ring and held Alec’s hand, Alec feeling his heart fastening a little bit and he cleared his throat.

“O-oh, it’s so pretty,” said Alec and Magnus happily beamed at him. Alec was in awe, it was completely up to his style and he could tell that Magnus put a lot into this. A lot of thought and attention. He smiled, slowly taking it out of the box and he noticed that it also had their initials on the inside. “You also had our names engraved, huh?” asked Alec, smiling and Magnus nodded.

“Yes, to compliment your ring,” said Magnus. “I mean mine, but the one that you… you know what, I’ll shut up… I won’t talk anymore, I tend to blaber when I’m nervous,” said Magnus and Alec chuckled, slipping the ring down his finger and he giggled. “But could you, um, tell me that speech you had planned for me?” asked Magnus and Alec grinned. “It’s been kind on my mind, I mean if you don’t mind. Or-”

“Okay,” said Alec and nodded. “I’ve been wanting to tell you,” said Alec and Magnus quickly nodded. He was so ready! Alec felt his heart beating much faster and he couldn’t stop it, but he managed to contain himself and he smiled softly, holding Magnus’ hands and he just cleared his throat. “Magnus Bane, I love you so much,” he said and Magnus quickly nodded. He wanted to tell Alec that he loved him too, but he didn’t want to interrupt again. “Thank you for coming in my life, you have completely changed me. I know it’s kind of cheesy, but you complete me. You complete me, you’ve showed me that there is such a thing like true love and with you by my side I feel like I can do anything - reach the sky. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, so if you would do me the honour, would you marry me?”

“Yes,” gasped Magnus because that speech was so perfect and before Alec could do anything else anymore, Magnus was kissing him again.


	38. Chapter 38

Alec’s heart swell with pride and joy as the door opened and his sister finally stepped through them, Simon already waiting for her at the altar and he smiled softly, Robert walking beside her as he was walking her down the aisle. Alec could see that his dad’s eyes were misty and he bit his lips because he was just so happy for his sister. Isabelle was glowing… no, glowing wasn’t as strong enough of a word to describe just how happy she looked and Alec glanced over at Magnus, who had tears in his eyes as he watched Isabelle walk down the aisle and Alec smiled softly, reaching for his fiance’s hand and he linked their fingers together, making Magnus look at his way and he just puffed his cheeks. It wasn’t like him to get so emotional during the weddings, but then again, this one was special. Isabelle was more than just a friend, she was a family at this point, biting into his lip and he just gave Alec a little smile, looking back at Isabelle, who had almost reached Simon already.

Simon, who had seen Izzy’s wedding dress for the very first time, couldn’t look away and Magnus started giggling because he looked as astonished as all of them predicted that he would and Izzy grinned as he saw that, looking over at Magnus, who wiggled his eyebrows and gave her a little wink. Oh, Simon definitely liked what he saw and she shuddered a little bit, looking over Robert, who was fighting back the tears and she felt her eyes welling up as well because it was just so emotional. 

Jace, who was Simon’s best man, gently tapped his shoulder because Simon was really just standing there and staring. Clary was standing on the other side of the aisle and was laughing because she could see that her best friend’s face had gotten really red and Simon started fanning himself, causing almost everyone in there to laugh and Izzy just bit her lip and then took in a deep breath. The way Simon looked at her was truly special and it always made her heart beat faster, biting into her lip as they finally reached the altar and she glanced over at Robert, who had a hard time of letting go of Izzy, who had always been his little girl, giving her a long, long hug and eventually he managed to step back.

Alec smiled when he saw his mother hugging him - he was more emotional than Maryse. Magnus then looked over at the side, where Asmodeus, Karen and the girls were sitting at. All of them were invited over to the wedding as well. It was done on a very last minute, but Izzy thought that it would be a good thing. Magnus’ mother couldn’t make it, but she was going to be coming to the engagement party, which was happening next week. It was all planned and Magnus was very excited about it. Excited, but also very nervous because he didn’t know how his parents were going to behave when they would be put together. Not to mention that Karen was also going to be there and it was just…

… right, it wasn’t the time to be thinking of that! Magnus snapped back to reality and he smiled as he glanced over at the alter, where Simon and Izzy were slowly in the process of getting married, the two of them saying their vows to each other and Alec bit his lip because in a few months, it was going to be him and Magnus up there and Alec was just…  _ oh, he couldn’t wait to be finally married.  _ Alec never really cared about getting married before; marriage was a concept that he didn’t hate, but he also wasn’t really too keen on about. That was until he met Magnus and proposed to him. Now he couldn’t wait to call Magnus his husband. Yes, it was really funny how much it all changed.

The ceremony was truly stunning, Alec looking around and he smiled when he saw Raphael, Catarina and Ragnor sitting in the back, biting into his lip and he looked back at the altar, Simon holding Izzy’s hand and Alec nodded. Magnus did an amazing job with the ceremony. In the end it was kind of good that it got postponed because it gave them all enough time to organise everything and Alec wrapped an arm around Magnus, who was tearing up again and he looked over at Alec. “Everything’s so beautiful,” whispered Alec into Magnus’ ear, who just nodded and he placed his hand over his chest.

“I’m glad it all worked out amazing,” said Magnus and then shook his head. “Look how happy they look,” said Magnus, glancing over to the happy couple and Alec just nodded because both Simon and Isabelle were glowing with happiness. Alec wanted to say that they were just going to be as happy, but then Simon’s sister Rebecca stepped closer to the altar and Alec bit his lip and nothing more left his mouth. Rebecca was their ring bearer and it was getting  _ real _ now, Alec grabbing onto Magnus’ hand tighter again and Magnus chuckled softly and he leaned up against him and kissed his cheek.

Alec was really proud as he was watching his sister getting married. Just like him, she also didn’t have the best luck with boyfriends in her past, but Simon was different than all of the guys that he dates. She usually liked the guys that had a  _ bad boy _ type around them, but they all ended up leaving and hurting her. But Simon was nothing like that; he was a shy and nervous guy that had a little band of his own. His music career was slowly starting to kick off more and more, but when Izzy met him, he was a small singer on his own, shy as hell when they met. It was when Clary and Jace met at a party and started dating. That was how Izzy got to meet Simon, it was through Clary.

Clary and Izzy became good friends almost immediately and one day Simon tagged along for their lunch plans. And that was how he and Izzy met. They clicked instantly and he caught Izzy’s attention. Not in a million years would Alec have thought that he and Izzy would not only end up dating, but also marrying each other. At the time, Alec didn’t really like either of them; but at the time he was also very bitter, grumpy and just… yeah. He didn’t like people at the time, but slowly the two of them had grown on him and they were now one of his closest friends, biting into his lip and he glanced back at Izzy and Simon. 

The two kissed and were pronounced married  _ finally.  _ Alec grinned all the way up to his ears and as the happily married couple walked out of the room down the aisle, together this time, all of the guests started cheering and Alec looked back at Magnus, who was now wiping his tears and he smiled softly, cupping his face and he kissed him softly, Magnus pressing his forehead against Alec’s and they both started giggling - it was a very emotionally packed day, but it was amazing and he couldn’t wait for the rest of it to go down, because it was going to be amazing. The reception was next and Magnus was just so happy and excited to see how the place was going to look. Yes, he was there to make sure that all was perfect, but it was just another kind of feel when there were guests present!

“We should probably get going,” said Magnus as Alec was just still standing there. He was looking at the altar and was imagining him and Magnus standing over there, saying each other’s vows and Alec finally looked away, gluing his eyes away from the altar and Magnus gave him a little smile. “Still a wedding planner, have to make sure that everything is in top notch condition,” said Magnus and Alec nodded. “Everything okay?” asked Magnus because he could see that Alec’s eyes were travelling over to the altar every now and then and Alec just nodded.

“Yes, I’m okay,” said Alec and giggled. “Just imagining us up there and how our special day is going to look like,” said Alec happily and Magnus wrapped an arm around Alec’s neck and he gave him a little kiss. Oh, Magnus already knew that it was going to be amazing, romantic and the best day ever. Their wedding was going to be the most amazing one ever and Magnus bit his lip.

“Aw, you romantic sap, you,” said Magnus, cupping Alec’s face. “It’s going to be the best wedding the universe has ever seen,” said Magnus, winking and Alec just nodded because he had a feeling that it was going to be just like what Magnus had described it.

“Oh, yes,” said Alec and Magnus started giggling.

* * *

Magnus’ cheeks were hurting from smiling so much; the wedding was a big success. Speeches were made, dances were danced and now it was finally the time for the dinner, Alec and Magnus sitting over at the table with Robert, Maryse and Max. Magnus was kind of going back and forth between the Lightwoods and the table where his father was sitting at; he didn’t mind it at all, happily smiling because this was really amazing. Simon and Isabelle were sitting with Jace and Clary over at the main table and Magnus was just amazed how everything was going - the wedding was perfect and he was just… very proud of himself and his team for pulling all of this off. 

But it was a lot of hard work and he was going to make sure that he wasn’t going to be planning his own wedding. He knew that Ragnor had a few plans already - at least that was what Alexander told him - and he was going to take him up for the offer. He knew how much Ragnor wanted to plan his wedding and it was going to be an honour if he was being honest. Ragnor was amazing at it as well and Magnus knew that he was in good hands.  _ Also, there was no way that he was planning his own wedding because it was going to be too stressful, he knew how much work it went into it.  _ And it would be even added pressure since it was his own wedding. 

“Magnus, this is really magical,” said Maryse and Magnus glanced up and then smiled. “I mean I knew that you were fantastic at your job; the wedding you’ve planned for Jace and Clary was out of this world, truly it was,” said Maryse and then bit her lip. “You really outdo yourself with each and every wedding you plan,” she said and Magnus felt his cheeks reddening a little bit. Oh, that was… just a part of his job, really. 

“Ah,” said Magnus and then puffed his cheeks. Not going to lie, it was good to be praised like this by his future in laws. “Well, it is a part of my job, I want to make my clients happy,” he said and looked over at Izzy and smiled. “And just wanna make them happy, that’s all,” he said and Maryse smiled and then nodded, but also there was more to what she had to say to that.

“Don’t sell yourself short, Magnus, you’re really amazing at your job,” said Robert and Magnus glanced over at him. “You’re gonna plan your and Alec’s wedding too?” he asked out of curiosity and Magnus chuckled. Alec then looked at him - they didn’t talk about it if he was being completely honest, but it was still months and months away. They decided that they were going to enjoy the life of being engaged as it was also… pretty amazing and he just puffed his cheeks.

“Well,” said Magnus and shrugged. “Truth be told, it’s a lot of work and for once I just wanna lay back and let someone else do the job. I’ve planned my first wedding and… I never wanna do that again,” said Magnus and then held Alec’s hand. “It’s supposed to be fun and a friend of mine had already offered to plan our wedding,” said Magnus and Alec perked up. Oh, good, Magnus was going to take Ragnor up to offer! That was amazing, Alec also wanted that to happen because he could tell how much it would mean to Ragnor.

“Ragnor?” asked Alec and Magnus smiled.

“Yeah,” said Magnus and Alec chuckled.

“Good,” said Alec happily. “Apparently he has already all planned, so it’ll be very interesting to see what he had prepared so far for the two of us,” said Alec and Magnus chuckled. Ah, so Ragnor spoke to Alec about it already? “He told me all about it even before the two of us got engaged,” he said and Magnus started laughing.

“Ah, to you too, huh?” asked Magnus and Alec nodded, laughing.

“Oh, yeah,” said Alec and Magnus started laughing. Ragnor and all of his friends if he was being completely honest, were very invested in their relationship and wedding, but that was just because they wanted Magnus to be happy and he knew that. Still, it was kind of funny and he just puffed his cheeks. He then glanced towards Maryse and Robert, who were again getting emotional and Alec cocked his head to the side. “Dad, is all okay?” asked Alec and Robert nodded.

“Oh, yes,” said Robert.

“It’s just all of you are getting married almost at the same time and it’s,” said Maryse and then took in a deep breath. “You’re not children anymore,” she said and then swallowed back the tears. “We’re so happy for all of you,” she said and then looked over at Max, who was eating his food in peace and she then sighed. “One day our Maxie will be getting married too,” she said and Robert sighed.

“Oh, mom, dad, can you please no-”

“You’re all growing up too fast,” said Robert and Magnus started laughing loudly. Alec bit his lip and then just shook his head. Oh, his parents were amazingly ridiculous and he loved it!

* * *

“Magnus, this is all just amazing,” said Madeline and Morgan nodded next to her just nodded because they really haven’t been to any weddings before, not to mention a one that was planned by Magnus, so this was all just new to the girls and they couldn’t stop looking around. Karen was also very impressed and Asmodeus just nodded because it was truly an amazing thing that he managed to do - and that was just one of the many weddings that his son has planned so far. 

_ He was truly such a talented young man.  _ And he couldn’t believe that he missed out on so much, but he was happy that he was there now. He was there now and he was going to be there forever, never was he going to walk out of his son’s life again. “This is truly,” said Asmodeus and Magnus’ heart swallowed with happiness because it truly meant a lot to him hearing it from his father and he just bit his lip. “Amazing, I had no idea that you were so talented. I mean this is really amazing,” said Asmodeus and Magnus flushed a little bit.

“Thank you, dad,” said Magnus. “This really means a lot to me coming from you,” he said and Asmodeus smiled and Karen was happy to see them interact with each other like this. They came such a long way and she was happy for them. 

“Magnus, you’ll plan my wedding too, right?” asked Morgan and Asmodeus’ jaw dropped.

“Who are you marrying, young lady?” suddenly piped up Asmodeus and Magnus started laughing. Morgan rolled her eyes and then she just shook her head.

“No one, papa,” she said.

“Good,” said Asmodeus and Karen rolled her eyes and then sent wink to Magnus, who giggled and then he just happily sighed. It was truly amazing that all of them were getting along so well; he was very happy and as they continued talking a little bit Morgan and Madeline suddenly perked up because it seemed that someone was coming closer to them and he wasn’t wrong. Just as he was about to turn around, he heard a voice calling out his name and he smiled.

“Magnus,” said Alec and everyone at the table quieted down. Magnus’ sisters were staring at Alec because they still couldn’t believe how  _ hot _ he was in person and Asmodeus just smiled eventually. Magnus on the other hand giggled and then bit his lip. Alexander needed him? “Oh, um, I didn’t mean to interrupt,” said Alec because he could see that everyone went quiet suddenly and Asmodeus shook his head.

“Not interrupting at all,” said Asmodeus eventually and Alec smiled, nodding and he then glanced at Magnus, looking around and he then took in a deep breath. 

“Would you all mind if I borrowed him for like a few minutes?” asked Alec and Magnus turned around and cocked his head to the side. Oh, what was this all about? He was interested, very much so indeed. “I kind of wanted to ask you, um, to dance?” stammered Alec out and Magnus clasped his hands together.  _ Really?  _ Oh, that was so romantic! The girls melted, they too wished that they would have someone as amazing as Alec!

“Oh, my,” said Magnus and chuckled. Such an official proposal to a dance. Magnus liked it and he stood up. “Of course I would love to dance with you, Alexander,” said Magnus in the end and Alec smiled happily. “I’ll be back,” said Magnus as he turned to Asmodeus and the others. Karen waved it off.

“Don’t you worry about us,” she said. 

“Yeah, go have fun you lovebirds,” said Asmodeus softly and Magnus happily wrapped his arms around as he dragged Alexander over to the dance floor, their lips meeting together once again as they danced around the room. 

It was truly… an amazing wedding indeed.


	39. Chapter 39

The long awaited engagement party was finally there and both Alec and Magnus were beyond excited about it. Also, very nervous because a) Alec was going to finally meet Magnus’ mother in person and b) Magnus was very nervous about how it was all going to go down between Cintia and Asmodeus. The two of them weren’t really talking, but he was happy that both of them were on board and he just hoped that it was all going to work out, biting into his lip as he was looking around the room and he then nodded. Everything was ready and all that needed were the guests, which are going to be coming very soon. Cintia had arrived to New York earlier that day and she was in the process of settling in her hotel. Magnus and Alec would love to go and pick her up from the airport, but both of them were very busy with the engagement party and they decided that it would be for the best if she came over to the location of the party on her own - it was no big deal. 

Alec had chatted with the woman over the video calls quite a few times by then, but now it was finally happening in person and it was just all very excited, looking around the room and it was truly…  _ an engagement party, huh?  _ Alec had never thought that he would be the one getting married and now there he was, biting into his lip and he then rubbed his palms together as he glanced towards Magnus, who was fixing the few last things over at the table where his parents were going to be sitting at and a little smile crept upon his face. Oh, this was all so very exciting and he then chuckled softly. 

While Magnus allowed Ragnor to plan their wedding, he decided that he was going to plan their own engagement party and Alec helped, a lot. The two of them planned the party and Alec had to hand it to Magnus that it was quite a lot of fun. Then again it was probably just so much fun to him because he got to work on it together with Magnus and he grinned when he saw Magnus finally glancing over to him and Magnus smiled. He took in a deep breath and then decided that everything was in place, going over to his fiance and he then puffed his cheeks. 

The party was taking place over at a restaurant where Alec proposed to Magnus; they both wanted the place to have some sentimental value to it and it seemed to be the perfect place where to organise their engagement party. It wasn’t anything fancy though, they kept it pretty simple, but they did invite all of their friends and family. Everyone that was dear to them was invited and it was all very exciting, Magnus stepping over to Alec, who was looking at everything and he liked how the place looked. It was just like Magnus put it - simple, yet elegant and both of their styles mixed perfectly together. Alec placed his hands on top of his sides and then nodded.

“You’ve done such an amazing job with all of this,” said Alec and Magnus stepped behind Alec, placing his hands on top of Alec’s shoulders and started gently massaging them. Alec chuckled and then he leaned back, Magnus kissing his nape and he then sighed happily again. 

“I did have a little help,” said Magnus, a hint of playfulness in his voice and Alec snorted.  _ Was he by any chance referring to him?  _ If he was, he shouldn’t because Alec didn’t really… well, he did help a little bit, but it was mostly Magnus’ hard work that went into all of this. Still, Magnus claimed that it wasn’t really any hard work and compare to all of those extravagant weddings that he had planned in his career so far, it was true, but sometimes less was really more and Alec just took in a deep breath and then closed his eyes for a little while, allowing Magnus to massage the knots away and he just grinned. Oh, it felt nice and he then had to remind himself to open his eyes.

“I really didn’t do much,” said Alec. “I mean I helped pick a few things, but other than that,” said Alec and then shrugged. “It was fun though, planning a party with you,” he said and Magnus then nodded, wrapping his arms around Alec’s waist and he pulled him closer, placing his chin on top of Alec’s shoulder. “Maybe I should start a business with you, we could open our own party planning business,” said Alec and Magnus started laughing - going back to planning parties?

“And weddings?” asked Magnus, intrigued, but he knew that Alec was only laughing and Alec started thinking about it, humming.

“Well, we could still plan weddings, you know? We could just do it all,” said Alec and Magnus started shaking with laughing, Alec slowly turning around in Magnus’ arms and he then pressed their foreheads together when they were facing each other. “I think it’s a rather good plan,” suggested Alec and Magnus frowned and then nodded. Oh, yes, it truly was, very good, very good.

“I’ll think about it,” said Magnus seriously and Alec finally burst in laughing.

“But better not,” said Alec and Magnus cocked his head to the side. “I mean with planning weddings and parties comes the responsibility of being nice to people and have a lot of patience and this is where you lose me,” said Alec and Magnus quickly shook his head. That wasn’t true at all, Alec was very nice and patient, always was. “I think you’d lose all of your clients in a matter of days, I would single handedly bring your company down,” said Alec and Magnus burst into loud laughter.

“Now, darling, that’s not true. You are kind and charming,” said Magnus, winking and Alec just shook his head. Oh, he was nice to the people that he liked and he didn’t like a lot of people, biting into his lip. “You’d make a good partner,” he said and Alec snorted because it was so obvious that the both of them were just joking around. 

“Hmm,” said Alec and Magnus just raised up his hand and gently pinched the bridge of Alec’s nose, who yelped and then just shook his head, both of their laughter dying out as they gazed into each other’s eyes, Alec leaning down, gently cupping Magnus’ chin with his finger, leaning his face up and Magnus happily followed Alec’s lead, leaning up, wrapping his arms around Alec’s neck and he pulled him down as their lips met in a little kiss that lead into a longer one and the kissing would have continued if there wasn’t someone that stepped inside of the room and Magnus and Alec finally pulled back, Alec’s jaw hitting the floor when he saw who was there.

The party wasn’t about to start for about more than an hour, but the two of them were early, of course, as they needed to set everything up. And whoever decided to join them was early by a lot. Magnus expected it to be either Ragnor or Catarina that couldn’t hold back and would end up coming early, but it wasn’t them and his eyes widened when he saw his mother standing by the door and he just quickly walked over to her to give her a hug. They didn’t see each other in person for months, it was truly a long time and Cintia just happily hugged her son as soon as he approached her, Alec biting into his lip and he then nodded. Oh, crap, he didn’t expect his mother in law to come there so early, she told them that she was going to be late probably, but she was-

“Mom, you’re here already,” said Magnus happily as the two of them broke their hug and she just happily shrugged and then took in a deep breath, gently cupped Magnus’ cheek and she happily sighed. 

“I know, I know, but,” said Cintia. “You know I managed to get on that earlier plane, which doesn’t really change a lot, I came to New York just a few hours earlier, but I wanted to surprise you,” she said and Magnus beamed at her. Oh, it was an amazing surprise and Magnus just gave her another hug because he was very happy to see his mom and Alec was holding back a little bit. They needed their little own private moment. Also, he didn’t know how to approach them - still, she was a celebrity but more importantly -  _ she was Magnus’ mother.  _ Alec took in a deep breath and then cleared his throat.

That caused both Magnus and Cintia to turn over to him and Alec felt his cheeks reddening a little bit because he felt being put under a spotlight and she smiled happily. “Alec, we finally meet in person, huh?” she asked and Alec just nodded, took in a deep breath and then rubbed his palms together. Oh, he was so nervous and she could tell. She then looked at his son and then shook her head again. “Magnus, the boy is still terrified of me,” she said, joking of course and Magnus just started laughing.

“Mom, of course he’s not,” said Magnus. “Isn’t that right, Alexander?”

“Of course not,” said Alec and then finally approached her, extending out his hand because he was going in for a hand shake.  _ This was their first time meeting, so Alec wanted to be polite and show Cintia that he had good manners.  _ “It’s just such a pleasure to finally meet you, ma’am,” he said and then reminded himself that she told him more than on one occasion that he should drop the formalities. She told him that he should just call her by her first name and Alec cursed. “Cintia,” he said, correcting himself and Cintia chuckled and then bit her lip.

“It’s my pleasure to finally meet you as well, Alec,” said Cintia and then instead of shaking Alec’s hand went in for a hug. Alec froze up, but then immediately smiled and hugged her back, Cintia eventually breaking the hug and she then smiled, looking up at him and then she glanced at Magnus. “Oh, he’s even taller than I imagined,” she said and Alec smiled shyly. “And so handsome,” she carried on and Alec’s cheeks were getting redder and redder. Magnus snorted and then quickly hurried over to Alec - he needed help.

“Okay, mom, we had a talk about this, right?” asked Magnus.

“Right, I’m sorry,” said Cintia and then glanced at Alec. “But I’m just so happy to finally meet you,” she said and Alec nodded because he felt the same. “So, let’s get this party started?” she asked and Magnus started laughing because this was like his mother that he knew, yes. Always ready to party and even though that it was still just the three of them they decided that they should just start the festivities already. After all, he hadn’t seen her in a long time.

So, they decided to open up a bottle of Champagne while they were waiting for the others to join them at the restaurant and Cintia was just so happy that she was finally there and now she could just witness how much the two of them loved each other. Yes, that much was very clear to her before, but now she could see how Magnus was looking at Alec and how Alec looked at her son - it was everything that she ever wished for Magnus.  _ His happiness and he looked just so happy with Alec.  _

* * *

“I am just so happy for you two,” said Marcel, Underhill’s boyfriend, and was tearing up. Magnus arched his brow, Alec laughing silently there next to him, shaking with laughter because he could tell that Marcel had too many glasses of Champagne; he really didn’t need a lot and it seemed that he was already under the influence of it. “You two are getting married, I am so,” he said, hiccuping and then he took in a deep breath and tried to remember where he was going with that.  _ Right.  _ “I’m just-just so happy,” said Marcel and leaned up against Underhill because his legs felt quite heavy and Alec nodded and then glanced at Underhill, who sent him a meaningful look.

“It’s okay, but there’s really no need to cry,” said Magnus quickly, stepping closer to the other one, who was still tearing up and before he could really say anything, Marcel threw himself around his neck and Alec started laughing. Oh, it was always a lot of fun when Marcel had too many drinks.

“It’s tears of happiness, Magnus. I’m so happy for you two,” said Marcel and Magnus nodded, gently patting his back, trying to break free, but Marcel’s grip was strong. He was surprisingly strong for his short and slim frame. “Teddy, they are getting married,” he said, now speaking to Underhill, who tried his best not to laugh. Ah, yes, the party was in full blow and everyone was having a good time. Everyone was there and it was going pretty good, Magnus still keeping an eye on Asmodeus and Cintia as they were still in the process of trying to avoid each other. He couldn’t really blame them and he was about to go check up on how they were doing, but Marcel was-

“Okay, babe, I think you should let go,” said Underhill quickly and Marcel quickly let go and his eyes widened because he wrinkled Magnus’ clothes and he gasped loudly. “Now what?” asked Underhill because he couldn’t get why his boyfriend looked so distressed. 

“Teddy, I ruined Magnus’ clothes, look he’s all wrinkled up and-” he started again fussing all over it and Magnus was the one laughing then, quickly fixing his clothes because he didn’t want Marcel to actually start crying.

“See, all’s good,” said Magnus quickly and Marcel nodded, waddling over to Underhill, but he then looked over at Alec again and he was tearing up again. 

“I’m so happy for you,” said Marcel and Alec nodded quickly.

“Thank you, I’m very happy that you’re here, both of you,” said Alec.

“Of course, you’re my best friends, I-” started Underhill, but the chatterbox was at it again and they pretty much soon saw that it was for the best if they just let Marcel speak as much as he wanted. 

“We will always be here for you, you guys are our family,” said Marcel.

“Okay, how about we go sit down?” asked Underhill.

“I can stand, I’m fine, see?” asked Marcel, standing proudly and Alec was laughing because he was standing, yes, but he was also leaning up against Underhill again. “I love this restaurant, it’s so romantic,” said Marcel and Alec smiled.

“Yeah, I proposed here and-”

“He proposed here, Teddy,” whispered Marcel and placed a hand upon his lips. “He. Proposed. Here,” he said and took in a deep breath again and Alec was just laughing because his friend was a mess, but he loved it and while Alec was talking over with the two of them, Magnus glanced at his parents, who were standing  _ together _ by the bar and he held in his breath.  _ Oh, he hoped that it was going to go okay! _

* * *

Asmodeus was on his way to grab himself another drink when he bumped into his ex-wife and even though he said to Magnus that he was okay with meeting her, he was trying his best to not run into her. And he wasn’t the only one, from the looks of it, she was also trying her best to avoid meeting him, but in the end they both ended up at the bar at the same time, silence falling between them and they both were looking down. It was… difficult, complicated, of course it was, but it was Cintia that took in a deep breath and decided to break the silence because she promised to Magnus that it was totally okay. And it was - this wasn’t about them, it was about Magnus. It was Magnus’ engagement party and she laughed nervously.

“Ah, so we finally run into each other,” said Cintia and Asmodeus glanced up and nodded. “The whole avoiding you part didn’t really work out the best for me, did it?” she asked and Asmodeus nervously laughed and then bit his lip.

“Yeah, neither did for me,” he said and they both burst into laughter - the kind of nervous laughter. Just what were they supposed to say to each other? “It’s, um, really nice to see you again,” said Asmodeus after a while and Cintia looked up at him and gave him a soft smile and then nodded.

“It’s been quite a while,” she said and then glanced around. Magnus was talking with his friends and didn’t notice them  _ yet.  _ “How have you been?” she asked, looking towards Asmodeus’ wife and his daughters then back to him and he took in a deep breath and then nodded.

“Good, good,” said Asmodeus. “And I’ve seen that you have quite the career, huh?”

“Well,” said Cintia and shrugged. “Don’t mean to brag, but yeah,” she said and they both started laughing. Breaking the ice, that was good. “Look, let’s not beat around the bushes - this is very… I know Magnus has forgiven you and that you’ve a changed man, but I still,” said Cintia and then made a little pause. “I’m not quite there yet, but I would love to be one day,” she said and Asmodeus nodded. Right, she didn’t hide what was really on her mind. A lot like Magnus.

“I know,” said Asmodeus. “And I don’t really blame you, but,” he said and then made another pause. “I wanted to tell you how sorry I am for how I-”

“It’s okay, you don’t have to apologise,” said Cintia and Asmodeus nodded, quickly stopping. “You’ve apologised. Multiple times. It’s me, not you,” she said and the man just nodded again. “But I’m willing to put it all behind me for the sake of Magnus,” she said and they both glanced towards Magnus, who was now looking at them. So, he noticed! “It’s he who matters the most. I know that many bad things happened between us, but, Magnus, he’s-”

“The only thing that matters, I agree,” said Asmodeus quickly and Cintia smiled softly.

“Yes,” she said and then hummed. “You have changed, good on you,” she said and Asmodeus awkwardly smiled and then nodded. “I-”

“Is all okay here?” asked Magnus because he couldn’t just stand there and watch from afar - he needed to make sure that everything was okay and both of them turned around and gave him a little smile. 

“Of course,” said Cintia and then gave her son a little smile; she could tell how nervous he was. “Don’t worry about us, honey, we’re okay,” she said and Asmodeus quickly nodded.

“Your mom is right,” said Asmodeus. “You should only focus on having fun today,” he said and Cintia nodded. Magnus bit his lip. That was right, but he just wanted all to be happy and to get along; they both knew that. Magnus was the most empathetic person they knew and if they did one thing right, it was Magnus. He was amazing. 

"Yeah," said Magnus in the end and then but his lip. "I just want to let you both know how much this means to me," said Magnus because it meant the world to him to see his parents trying to get along for his sake. He knew that there were still things that the two of them needed to work through but it was a start. A very good start and he was proud of his parents. Proud and happy for them. And for a change he really did feel like a priority. "And I know that it's not easy, so I just want to tell you how much this means to me. To have you both here with me," he said and felt his eyes welling up, but he really couldn't help it. He was so happy and the other two just smiled and nodded.

"Of course, son, we love you and-" started Asmodeus, but his voice trailed off when he saw Magnus tearing up and he quickly glanced over at Cintia, who just smiled and nodded. She stepped closer to their son and did the only thing that felt right - she hugged him tightly. Asmodeus smiled and then stepped closer to them and gave Magnus a little hug as well.

_ This was the best thing ever. Magnus couldn't be happier. _

He had his family back. And he gained a new one along the way.

* * *

Music was playing as Jace was getting ready to make a speech. The party was going amazing - Banes and the Lightwoods were all getting along together and Magnus was so happy that they all got to finally meet his mother, who managed to charm all of them. Alec was having an amazing time and now he was very interested to see just what kind of speech his brother prepared for them. Max was already rolling his eyes and Alec was laughing silently. “People, people, settle down,” said Jace and Alec nodded.  _ Ah, yes, so he also had a bit too much to drink?  _

People weren’t really listening and Ragnor, who had gotten really close to his brother on their engagement party decided to step in. He was a good friend after all and he needed to hear the speech. “People, settle down,” announced Ragnor more than only once and he finally managed to get the attention of everyone and Jace happily smiled. Catarina was shaking her head over at the side and Raphael was just listening to this - he was very entertained by Jace and Ragnor. 

“Thank you,” said Jace and Ragnor nodded.

“Of course,” he said and grinned. “Is the only thing I can do for the best man,” he said and Alec chuckled. Yep, Jace was going to be a best man again. He took great pride in it and Alec just nodded. Catarina was going to be there by Magnus when they would be getting married; at least that was how he got the plan… so far, but it could change. 

“Don’t you just love this guy?” asked Jace and Clary was laughing there next to him.

“Oh, brother,” said Izzy and Alec just placed a finger upon his mouth, trying to shush her, but Jace just narrowed his eyes and decided not to listen to his sister. “This should be good,” said Izzy and Clary giggled there next to her. Oh, yes, when Jace had too much alcohol in his system, he was…

“To Magnus and Alec,” announced Jace and the happy couple looked up and they nodded. “It will be my absolute honour to be your best man, Alec,” he said, hiccuping a little bit. “And you, Magnus, you make my brother happy. Your love story is really an inspiration, I truly am inspired and...” and so on and on. Jace’s speech dragged out for about half an hour - yeah, half an hour, he somehow managed to talk for half an hour, but in the end nobody really minded it. And of course after Jace’s speech - it was Robert’s and Maryse’s turn. As much as Alec was blushing when he was listening to the two of them talk, he was just so very grateful. For everything. 

And Magnus? 

Well, he was just sitting there and was happily listening to everything. The engagement party was a huge success and he couldn’t be happier. He was surrounded by people that loved him. It was all that mattered, squeezing Alec’s hand and they both grinned as they looked at each other. 


	40. Chapter 40

“Ah, this is the best,” said Alec happily as he took a big sip of his drink and then glanced towards his friend, who smiled and nodded. It was after work and he and Underhill decided to stop at their favourite pub for a little drink. They finished with work earlier that day - it was Friday after all and Luke was an amazing boss; on Fridays he usually let them off earlier and it was truly an amazing feeling. Alec bit his lip and then stared down at his drink, Underhill leaning back against his chair and he just nodded. As much as it was fun to work for Luke, it was also good that it was Friday because he needed that weekend; they all did and Alec just snorted when he saw the look on Underhill’s face; he was tired. “You going okay there?” asked Alec and Underhill shrugged.

“Yeah,” said Underhill and then took a big sip of his drink as well and hummed in delight. “As much as it is fun to work for Luke and all of that, I’m so happy that it’s finally weekend,” said Underhill and Alec nodded; he felt the same way. He has been really busy lately - if it wasn’t with Izzy’s wedding and planning his and Magnus’ own engagement party, he was always going around and doing something. So, he was glad that finally for that weekend he didn’t have any plans. Neither did Magnus because both of them needed a little bit of time off - they were going to spend the whole weekend doing completely and utterly  _ nothing.  _ It was going to be the most perfect weekend ever and he couldn’t wait for it.

“I know what you mean,” said Alec and then took in a deep breath. “Even the weekends have been busy lately,” he said and Underhill nodded because he could just imagine under what kind of a pressure Alec must had been. “I mean, it’s been all more than fun. God, I loved our engagement party so much,” he said and a little smile tugged at his lips, Underhill glancing at him and he had to hand it to them that the engagement party was a big success. But then again, how could it not? They were celebrating Magnus’ and Alec’s love, which was-

“Hmm, yes,” said Underhill. “You two did such an amazing job with it,” he said and Alec gave him a little nod. “And how are the preparations for the wedding going?” he asked curiously and Alec slowly glanced at him and then took another sip of his drink and just shrugged.

“We haven’t really started yet,” said Alec and Underhill arched his brow. “I mean we’ve been engaged for less than a month. I guess we just want to enjoy that bit for a little while, but,” said Alec and Underhill perked up. “Ragnor has been emailing us some of his ideas and let’s just say that things are slowly coming together even though officially, we haven’t really started planning anything,” said Alec and Underhill chuckled and then he nodded. 

Oh, yes, he met Ragnor a few times so far and he was really invested into the whole wedding part of Magnus’ and Alec’s relationship. But then again, he could relate to him - he just wanted to give his best friend the best wedding ever and that was something that Magnus deserved. Truly. “Ah, yes, Ragnor,” said Underhill and Alec smiled. “He’s quite a character, isn’t he?” asked Underhill and Alec just snorted.

“Well, he’s an amazing guy,” said Alec. “And he and Magnus are working well together. I don’t really know much about planning weddings, but I try to help out as much as I can. I just point to the things that seem the prettiest to me and so far Magnus likes my choices,” said Alec and Underhill then started laughing. “But yes, like I said, nothing official yet,” said Alec and Underhill nodded again. “Just taking a bit of a time off from party planning and all of that,” said Alec. “But when we have our energy back, we are going to start planning and it’s going to be amazing. Our wedding will be the best one ever,” said Alec and Underhill started laughing.

“I didn’t know that it was a competition,” commented the other one and Alec rolled his eyes.

“Well, it isn’t, but I’m just saying,” said Alec and then took in a deep breath. “Magnus’ and mine wedding will be the best wedding in the history of all weddings,” he said and Underhill just shook his head; he knew that Alec was a very competitive person and as much as he learned about Magnus, so was he. So it didn’t really come as a surprise that the two of them were working against  _ all _ of the weddings that had ever been created to make one super-mega-spectacular wedding. 

“You two are such dorks,” said Underhill and Alec pressed his lips together.

“Who are you calling a dork, huh?” asked Alec and Underhill snorted. “I might be one, but Magnus isn’t a dork. He’s the most amazing person ever,” stated Alec and Underhill glanced up and down Alec - did one bottle of beer started to have its effect on Alec? But then again, he was always overprotective of Magnus and it was sweet. Underhill in the end just decided to apologise for the sake of it and he took his words back - that made Alec satisfied again.  _ Again, such a dork. And a child.  _

Alec and Underhill continued talking about random things, laughing and chatting happily. It was fun to be spending some time out with his friend like this; it’s been a while after all and by the time that Alec finished his drink, he saw something in the corner of his eye that caught his attention. The thing was; he and Underhill were regulars at the bar when they were still working at Imogen’s. It was close to her workplace and due to the nostalgia they decided to pay it a little visit again. 

In the past, the two of them would come to the bar after work to relieve stress and to do that they played pool. It’s been a while since the two of them had played a round of it, but Alec’s eyes lit up as he saw the pool tables and he rubbed his palms, Underhill arching his brow because he didn’t really know what Alec was up to. He turned his head to the direction to where Alec was looking at and Underhill finally realised what was on Alec’s mind, grinning as well and he then hummed.

“Up for a game, Underhill?” asked Alec and Underhill chuckled, but nodded.

“Oh, you know I’m always ready to kick your ass,” said Theodore and waggled his eyebrows. Alec smiled back and he felt his competitive side alive and kicking; the two of them were pretty good at it so it was always lots of fun trying to beat each other. Alec was a little bit rusty, but he was pretty sure that he could get his dormant skills back and he just stood up and then grinned.

“Oh, it’s so on,” said Alec and Underhill stood up. “But it’s your ass that is getting kicked,” said Alec proudly and Underhill just started laughing.

“We’ll see about that, Lightwood,” said Underhill and Alec grinned.

* * *

“Yes, I win,” cheered Underhill and Alec’s eyes widened. That was the second round  _ and he lost.  _ Again. Alec was in a terrible mood and he tried not to sulk too much, but he didn’t like losing. He wasn’t usually a sore loser, but then again… Alec took in a deep breath and just dropped the pool cue back onto the pool table and he walked away from his friend, who was still celebrating and in the end Underhill just rolled his eyes because he had a feeling that Alec was going to react like that. “Now, there’s no need to-”

“I want a re-match,” said Alec as he still refused to look at his friend, who was laughing silently.

“Don’t you think that we’ve had enough? I think it’s time to go back home and-”

“Oh, is this fear talking?” asked Alec, but deep down he knew that he had a point. Alec had called Magnus and told him that he was going to be coming back home a bit later than he anticipated. He also announced that he was kicking Underhill’s ass in pool, which was a lie… well, not at the time. At the time he was still pretty much convinced that he could win, but now it all came crashing down on him and he knew that he had cursed himself. He was bragging way too much about it to Magnus and he shook his head. He wasn’t leaving until he was going to win. At least one round. 

“Not fear, but when you look at the time, you’ll-”

“One more round,” said Alec and then he narrowed his eyes. “Or did you cheat, huh?” he carried on and Underhill was laughing again. He didn’t really hold it against Alec because he knew him well enough and this wasn’t the first time that he got so defensive upon losing a game of pool. But when he would win then he wouldn’t stop celebrating and rubbing it into Underhill’s face.  _ So, when it came to it, it didn’t really matter if Alec lost or not.  _

“I didn’t cheat,” said Underhill and then sat back down.

“Uh-huh,” said Alec. “Then prove it and let’s go one more round,” said Alec, already warming up again and Underhill just shook his head because not only that he wasn’t in the mood anymore, but he just wanted to go home and Alec in the end started sulking, Theo biting his lip and he glanced towards his phone.  _ Maybe he should phone Magnus to come and get Alec?  _ He doubted that until he’d win a round of a game that he would go back home willingly and he just snorted.

“Maybe I should've let him win,” said Underhill under his breath and Alec couldn’t really make out what it was, but he guessed that it was Underhill complaining and grumbling about him wanting to go another round. “Next time,” said Underhill finally and in the end Alec just sat back down as well and just decided that it was for the best if he admitted defeat. Very well! As Alec was about to finally tell Underhill that he was ready to go back home, his phone buzzed and Alec took his phone out of his pocket to see who it was. 

Magnus! And quickly opened the text and he smiled when he read it - he was no longer in a bad mood! Well, kind of he still was, but when Magnus texted, he was always cheerful.

**Magnus:** Darling, will you be out much longer? Not complaining, just so I know when to prepare us some dinner. Also, did you kick Theo’s ass? I bet you won and were amazing out there ;-) I wanna see you play, maybe next time it should be the two of us? <3 Love you, xxo <3\. 

Alec chuckled and then texted Magnus back - he needed to let him know how his best friend turned on him. Alec still couldn't leave that down and he just poured and then started texting Magnus back.  _ He was going to tell him everything!  _

**Alec:** Magnus, Theo beat me. I was trying to hard to win, but he somehow managed to beat me twice in a row. Now I challenged him to another round, but he doesn't want to play with me anymore. I think that maybe he cheated before and now he is afraid that I am onto him. It all makes sense! :-/

Magnus soon texted back! 

**Magnus:** Aw; angel, I'm so sorry to hear this. I know that you gave it your best. Sometimes we can always win, but it's okay. You will show him the other time how it's done. You'll see ;-)

Alec smiled and then nodded because he knew that Magnus had a point. Also, he kind of wanted to go back home as it was getting late and having a little dinner with Magnus sounded more than perfect for the end of the working week. Alec chuckled and then replied back to Magnus. 

**Alec:** You are right. Besides, I'm just being a sore loser and I know it. Haha. I will soon be on my way back home so we can prepare something to eat together. <3

Alec then tucked his phone back to its usual space and he looked towards Underhill, who arched a brow - Alec was done throwing himself the pity party? "Okay, okay. This time I admit defeat," said Alec in the end and Underhill just snorted but then he nodded. That was good, it was a progress and he then rubbed his palms together. "But next time," said Alec and Underhill raised his brow. "Prepare yourself because you're going down," said Alec and Theodore just rolled his eyes but smiled.

"Sure."

"Okay, I'll go pay for the drinks," said Alec as it was part of the deal - the loser paid for the drinks and Underhill wanted to say that it was okay but Alec insisted on it. "Meet me outside?" asked Alec and Underhill nodded.

"I'll call us an Uber," said the blonde and Alec gave him a little nod before going over to the bar. The place was quite crowded but that made sense as it was weekend. And Alec expected to see many people in the bar that day but he ended up running into a person that he wanted to see least. 

There over at the bar was Josh. Yes; Josh. His ex-boyfriend and Alec's jaw dropped. What was he doing there? Alec bit his lip and he turned around to the door, but Underhill was already out and in the end Alec just took in a deep breath and approached the bar, hoping that Josh wasn’t going to see him there even though he was literally just there hanging out by the bar with some of his friends.  _ There was no sign of that boyfriend that accompanied him to Jace’s wedding.  _ Though, knowing Josh, he had already changed boyfriends in the meantime since he had last seen him and if he was being honest, he didn’t really want to know. He just wanted to pay for the drinks and be on his merry way back home. That was all. 

However, Alec of course didn’t have such luck and as soon as he approached the bar, Josh noticed him as well. At first Alec thought that he was going to let him go without causing any kind of scenes and without approaching him, but as Alec paid for his and Underhill’s drinks and turned around to leave the bar, Josh stepped up from behind him and Alec almost ended up bumping into him. Alec groaned and then rolled his eyes, taking in a deep breath and he clasped his hands together behind his back.  _ He just hoped that this was going to be fast and that Josh wasn’t going to cause too much drama.  _

“Josh, please, move,” whined Alec and then shook his head. “Look, I was just here to pay for the drinks and I’ll be on my way back home,” he said and Josh narrowed his eyes. Alec arched his brow. “What?”

“You moved,” said Josh and Alec narrowed his eyes.

“So?” asked Alec because he didn’t get what Josh was trying to tell him with that. Did he go checking by his former place? Honestly, that didn’t make much sense, but still he didn’t really care and he tried to walk past Josh, but he wouldn’t let him move and he just bit his lip. “Oh, for the love of God, just move. I don’t… I’m not really in the mood, okay?” grumbled Alec and Josh just folded his arms on top of his chest.

“I just want to talk,” said Josh and Alec arched his brow.

“You want to… talk?”

“Yes.”

Alec scoffed - oh, so he wanted to  _ talk _ now, did he? “Why?” asked Alec and he was getting impatient because he didn’t like the look in his eyes. He was drunk, wasn’t he? At least he was reeking of booze and Alec just rolled his eyes and tried to be as polite as he possibly could, but Josh was making it kind of hard on him with him being all up in his face like that. “Why do you care if I moved? Have you been trying to-”

“I don’t really care,” said Josh and Alec just nodded and then rubbed the back of his neck. 

“So, I see that you’re still a dick, nothing’s changed,” said Alec and then shook his head. “Look, what do you need? I’m not in the mood, go back to your boyfriend and let me return back to my fiance,” said Alec and then placed his hands on top of his sides and shook his head. “I ask this of you nicely, next time I ask it won’t be so nice, so please just leave me alone,” said Alec and Josh seemed quite surprised.

“Fiance… you’re getting married?” asked Josh and bowed his head down. Oh, so that wasn’t what he wanted to hear? Then what he wanted to hear? That he was still mourning their relationship? They’ve broken up a year and a half ago, he didn’t get what Josh wanted from him anymore and he just rubbed his temples and then shook his head and then bit his lip.

“Yeah, I am,” said Alec. “I mean in a way I think I should be thanking you for cheating on me because now I’ve met someone truly amazing,” said Alec and then nervously tapped with his foot and then narrowed his eyes. “What is it?” he asked because he could tell that there was something on Josh’s mind and Alec truly didn't know what to think of it anymore. Was he there to apologise or? Alec was confused and he didn’t know what to-

“Oh. I didn’t know,” said Josh and Alec shrugged.

“Yeah. I mean I bet, Jace stopped talking to you soon after the wedding. I mean did you really have to bring your new boyfriend and parade him all over the place?” asked Alec and then just took in a deep breath because he knew that he was being too cruel, maybe? It seemed that Josh only wanted to talk, but Alec was so fed up with all of the… talking .Josh never wanted to talk and now all of the sudden he was willing to… talk? Oh, no, Alec wasn’t his puppet anymore. Because that was what he was in the past, Josh whistled and expected Alec to heel beside him every single time. Not anymore. Not anymore. 

“Mark and I aren’t dating anymore,” mumbled Josh.

“Ah,” said Alec. “So you thought that I’d want to go back with you?” asked Alec and scoffed. “Please,” he said and shook his head. 

“I miss you,” said Josh.

“Nope. We’re not doing this again,” said Alec.

“I just want my friend back, I mean we can still be friends and-”

“No,” said Alec and raised his finger up. He was shaking because he was pissed off, but he needed to settle this once and for all. Josh couldn’t just… he needed to end this. “I don’t want to be your friend. No. It’s over. You missed your chance. I have someone else now and I don’t miss you. At all. You broke my heart and me, it took me months to get over you so just please… leave me alone. It’s over, I’m over it all and I suppose you get over it as well. Just… goodbye, Josh,” said Alec quickly and stepped past Josh, quickly hurrying over to Underhill who went back in to check up on Alec as he wasn’t getting outside and his eyes widened when he saw his friend over at the bar talking with… Josh. That made Underhill’s blood boil with anger and he was really tempted going back to the idiot and giving him a well-deserved slap. He should have done it a year back!

Alec marched towards Underhill. Alec didn’t tell him what that was all about, but Underhill didn’t ask. But the look on Alec’s face told him that Alec wasn’t in a bad mood. Alec was kind of glad that he ended up running into Josh. It wasn’t like it’s been hanging over his head all the time, but it was good to see that he was doing better and he finally got to tell him someone -  _ goodbye.  _

He didn’t even know it himself, but it meant a lot to him.


	41. Chapter 41

A few months into being engaged, Magnus and Alec finally started officially planning their wedding and it was really a lot of fun. It was fun enjoying the  _ engaged _ part of their relationship, but the two of them finally had a feeling that maybe it was time to speed things up towards them being  _ married _ and both of them were really excited about the whole thing. Ragnor was very patient with Magnus. As much as Alec didn’t really complain about things as he wasn’t really into the whole planning thing after all, Magnus was quite the challenge, but luckily Rangor was ready for all of that. He was well prepared and he never really lost his cool with Magnus, whose wishes were quite extraordinary, but he still made sure that Alexander was cool with it all.

As much as the wedding was going to be very extraordinary and very over the top, the amount of people that were going to be invited to it, was going to be very short. It was just going to be their closest family and friends - that was all, truly. When Magnus was getting married before, Camille was in charge of their wedding guests and she managed to invite so many people - most of them Magnus didn’t know and his circle of friends at the time was quite large thanks to her. And as much as he didn’t really like complete strangers showing up to their wedding, he didn’t say anything; he just wanted to make her happy. But he didn’t get much say in it, truly. Not really. 

Magnus was happy that Alec was letting him the freedom with the planning, but was at the same time very involved into the whole thing; Alec was just… perfect, truly. So, yes, it was going to be over the top in many things, but it no many people were going to be there and Alec was happy about that because that was what weddings were for, right? They were supposed to be spent with the people that you loved and cared about the most - family and friends. And that was exactly what Magnus thought as well.

So, yes, everything was going to according to the plans. The wedding was just around the corner; Alec couldn’t believe just how fast all of those months passed; he had a blast and with the big day coming up, he couldn’t wait. In many ways he wished that he could fast forward to the main thing, but at the same time he didn’t want it to happen too fast - he wanted to enjoy it.  _ He was only getting married once, so he tried to live out every part of it to the fullest and it was truly so much fun.  _

It was Friday that day and it started out like any other ordinary Friday - he had his morning coffee with Magnus, he kissed him goodbye and he then left for office. Nothing was out of the ordinary, not until he was getting ready to get home. Someone jumped him when he was getting out of the elevator. At first Alec didn’t what was going on, but he soon managed to recognise who in the world had jumped him like that - completely caught off guard and Alec almost hit him.  _ It was Jace!  _

Ugh, he should have known! But what in the world was Jace doing with him?! Alec was asking many questions along the way as he was being dragged towards Jace’s car, but the other wouldn’t really tell him where he was taking him and Alec was starting to get suspicious - not only that he was jumped from behind, but Jace made him wear a blindfold. It was all very suspicious, but judging by the fact that it was soon going to be his wedding and that Jace was his best man - he was being dragged towards his own bachelor party, wasn’t he? Alec didn’t really complain and he sat patiently in the car as he was being driven towards the destination of the party and he was kind of looking forward to it all, thinking hard all the way through.

_ Underhill was acting kind of strange that day - he knew about the party didn’t he? _

Oh, this was going to be so much fun! He wondered who else Jace ended up inviting and he just took in a deep breath as the car stopped and Alec arched his brow. “Oh, we’re already here?” asked Alec and Jace was laughing along the way because he could already see that Alec had worked it out all already. 

Well, it didn’t really come as a surprise. Jace was the one that organised Simon’s bachelor party and it went exactly like this. Unlike Alec, though, Simon was scared and wouldn’t stop screaming until the two of them would reach the destination. It was quite funny, but also Alec felt bad for the poor guy. Jace could be quite intimidating with his presence and he was just smiling, holding onto Jace’s shoulder as he got out of the car and then he took in a deep breath and smiled.

“Watch your step,” said Jace and Alec glanced towards Jace. “There’s a stair in front of you,” he said and Alec stepped up, humming as he wondered where Jace had took him to and he narrowed his eyes underneath the blind fold.

“You really do like the dramatics, huh?” commented Alec and pointed over to the blind fold over his eyes and Jace just shrugged because it was quite a lot of fun if he was being completely honest.

“It’s fun,” said Jace and then opened the door, letting Alec inside of the building.

“For you maybe, I almost hit you - you scared the shit out of me,” complained Alec, but he was laughing along as Jace opened the other door in front of them and he then smiled when he saw everyone else waiting for them in there and he chuckled softly, taking in a deep breath and he then bit his lip. “Wonder where you took me,” said Alec as he was talking out loud and Jace snickered.

“Does the name Pandemonium mean anything to you?” asked Jace and then stepped behind Alec, taking the blindfold off and Alec’s jaw dropped.  _ Pandemonium? As one of the most famous clubs in the city?  _ Oh, Alec did hear of it a few times, but he never thought that he’d actually visit one. It was more of Magnus’ area if he was being honest; Magnus did tell him about it a few times and it made him wonder if maybe Jace heard of the club from his fiance. That was kind of hilarious!

“Holy shit!” said Alec and then bit his lip when he saw all of the others in there and he then laughed. “Pardon my language,” he said and the others started laughing, Alec looking around the room and he smiled when he saw the others -  _ Jace, Simon, Underhill, Marcel, Izzy, Clary… they were all there.  _ Alec’s smile grew and he puffed his cheeks. Ragnor and the others were with Magnus, huh? Alec could just wonder; with Ragnor and Jace getting closer, the two of them probably worked out their bachelor parties on the same time. 

“Welcome to your bachelor party,” said Izzy softly and smiled all the way up to her ears and Alec took in a deep breath and then glanced around.

“My bachelor party, holy shit,” escaped through Alec’s lips and he then shook his head and bit his lip. He still couldn’t believe it himself - truly! He was getting married and his heart jumped happily and he then chewed on his lower lip. Oh, if only Magnus was there; it would be so much fun if they would both celebrate their bachelor party together, but it wasn’t really the custom, was it? Oh, Alec missed Magnus’ friends - they were all so good friends that it felt weird that they weren’t included to the party!

“Yeah,” said Jace happily and then Alec stepped closer to all of them and he glanced towards Underhill, who was smiling and Alec grinned.

“I knew there was something off about you today,” said Alec and Underhill chuckled when eh saw Jace’s eyes on him.

“Hey I did my best trying to keep the secret, you know I’m terrible at it,” said Underhill and then just showed his teeth to Jace. “It’s all good, all good, let’s party instead,” said Underhill and then looked over to his friend, who was beaming with joy and he just looked over to Izzy, who was smiling brightly and he happily puffed his cheeks.

Ah, this was so amazing! It seemed that Jace put a lot thought into the whole thing. There were snacks, drinks - everything was ready for the party to be started! All that was needed was the music, really and Alec narrowed his eyes, looking over to his brother, who had a bright smile on his face and he then took two glasses of drinks - Champagne! He handed one to Alec and kept the other for himself and then he gave him a little wink. 

“As the best man,” said Jace and Alec cackled. “It is my pride and joy to welcome you all to my brother’s bachelor party. A word from the groom and the party can officially begin,” said Jace and Alec’s eyes lit up and he then cleared his throat, realising that he needed to make a speech.  _ But what kind of a speech?  _ Alec was honestly so touched and the only thing that he could say was-

“I, um,” said Alec and then just raised his glass up. “Thank you for being here with me, all of you. I’m not very good at giving these speeches, so how about we just get this party started?” asked Alec and then looked over at Jace, who nodded and the music started playing, which surprised Alec.

Oh, wow, Jace hired even a DJ?!

Alec didn’t really have the time to think about that because everyone else raised their glasses up to the sky and they cheered, Alec joining them as well. It was going to be the most amazing party yet!

* * *

Alec was having a blast at his own bachelor party; he had a few drinks, he was dancing awkwardly there at the side with his friends - not that it really mattered. His dancing skills didn’t matter; all that mattered was that all of them were having a lot of fun. It was about an hour or so into the party when Jace announced that there was main surprise for Alec waiting over in the back room - one that he was going to receive in private and because Alec knew his brother way too much, he worried.  _ If he hired a stripper for him, Alec was going to hit him.  _ No joke. He wasn’t in the-

“Jace, care to tell me what this surprise is about?” asked Alec, trying not to make a big deal out of it, but he was still getting more and more annoyed. As much as he knew Jace, he wished that his brother would change by then, huffing under his breath and he then made a little pause. Jace wasn’t saying much and there was a chair in the middle of the room. The lights were dimmed and Alec arched his brow.

“If I tell you now, it wouldn’t be a surprise, now would it?” asked Jace, who kept checking his phone for some reason. He was texting someone, but Alec could really see who he was texting. Ugh, he was going to run out of the room. Just the sheer thought of-

“I’m going to punch you if you hired me a stripper,” grumbled Alec. “No offense, but I-”

“Oh, you’ll thank me later,” said Jace and Alec rolled his eyes.

“Jace, look-”

“Trust me, come on, I’m your best man. I wouldn’t get you a bad surprise on your own bachelor party,” said Jace and winked. Alec grumbled under his breath and then he just nodded because in the end what else was he supposed to do? But still, he wasn’t going to hesitate getting out of there if Jace really did go ahead and hired him a professional strip tease. The smug look on Jace’s face told Alec that Jace was up to something after all and he was just looking at him and he didn’t dare to approach the chair.

“Okay, fine,” said Alec and Jace waggled his eyebrows. 

“Good, now sit down and close your eyes. No peeking or I’ll have to bring out the blind fold again,” said Jace and Alec sat down onto the chair even though he was hesitating a lot and he then decided to trust his brother because Jace wouldn’t dare to do anything stupid.  _ He knew better to not provoke Alec, but also he wasn’t a jerk.  _ So, Alec decided to keep his mind open.

“Okay, now what?”

“This is my cue to leave,” said Jace, checking if Alec had his eyes closed and Alec bit his lip. 

“Why?”

“Well, it’s a surprise you should see in private,” said Jace and snickered as he was glancing over to the door and he gave the one that was waiting behind the door a thumbs up and Alec just shook his head.

“Jace, you idiot, if you really hired a-”

“Like I said, you’ll be thanking me later,” said Jace and tapped Alec’s shoulder and then finally feld, leaving Alec alone and the dark, almost. Alec could feel that the room had just gotten darker and when the music started playing, he was pissed off, but at the same time he was reminding himself that he should be trusting Jace. He was the best man, he wouldn’t do anything stupid. He was a good guy, he wasn’t stupid. He was rough around the edges, but when it came to-

Alec opened his eyes when he heard someone stepping closer to him and he narrowed his eyes because he couldn’t make out who it was, but he could see a person standing in the room and Alec just shook his head. Okay, he needed to get out of there, soon, he couldn’t- “Ah, as I expected, my brother really did...” started Alec and then clasped his hands together. He didn’t mean to be rude, he really didn’t. “Look, I mean this as a no offense. I know it’s kind of a standard for this type of stuff to happen at a bachelor party, but I’m really not-” started Alec, the lights finally switching off and his voice trailed off when he finally saw the surprise fully.

There was  _ Magnus _ standing dressed as a shirtless firefighter and Alec’s eyes travelled up and down.  _ Fuck.  _ Alec was truly blessed and he cleared his throat, Magnus smiling back at him and he truly didn’t know how to react. Magnus gave him a little wink and he slowly moved closer to him, swaying his hips in a very  _ yummy _ way, Alec feeling his throat getting even more dry and he gulped. Shit, that was the hottest thing ever. “Cat got your tongue, darling?” asked Magnus and sent Alec another wink.

“Holy hell,” said Alec, finally reminding himself how talking worked and Magnus started laughing. Alec didn’t get why was Magnus there, he didn’t really get what was going on because his mind stopped working. His brain couldn’t really work at the time. Alec.exe has shut off and he didn’t know how to form any coherent sentences. Magnus chuckled because he could tell that Alexander was enjoying himself over there and he slowly continued swaying his hips to the beat of the song and he waggled his eyebrows. “W-what are-”

“I’m the surprise,” said Magnus.

“Oh my God,” said Alec and Magnus chuckled.

“So, I’m a God now?” asked Magnus, slowly placing his hands on top of Alec’s shoulders and the other just nodded. Yes, he was. Magnus Bane was God. “You’re adorable, darling,” said Magnus and Alec cleared his throat, his eyes travelling up and down Magnus again and he shuddered. 

Alec had seen Magnus naked more times that he could count and it always took his breath away. But this was different, seeing him dressed like that just made him… “It’s really hot in here, isn’t it?” asked Alec and Magnus snickered.

“Oh, yeah?” asked Magnus and stradled Alec’s legs. Alec bit his lip. “It’s good you have a fireman on you,” he said and Alec laughed. “Not too much, is it? Jace had this idea and I thought it would be good surprise, but I-”

“Perfect. Jace is a genius,” said Alec and Magnus was laughing. “And you as well. I mean… wow,” said Alec and Magnus cupped his face and pressed a kiss upon his lips, Alec hungrily kissing him back, placing his hands on top of Magnus’ shoulders and he didn’t even hesitate on pulling on the suspenders. Fuck. He didn’t even know that suspenders could be so hot, slowly pulling them off of Magnus’ shoulders, biting into the other’s lower lip and Magnus softly moaned into the kiss, but he then reminded himself where they were and he broke up their kiss just in time. “More,” whined Alec.

“You’ll get more, I have whole dance prepared for you,” said Magnus and Alec’s eyes lit up.

“Christmas came early,” said Alec and Magnus was laughing, pressing their foreheads together and Alec then cleared his throat. “By the way,” said Alec.

“Hmm?”

“How come you’re here on my bachelor party?” asked Alec. “I don’t mind. I missed you and the others, we should all be celebrating,” said Alec and Magnus smiled and kissed the tip of his nose.

“Yeah,” said Magnus and then hummed softly. “Funny story. It’s my bachelor party as well,” said Magnus and Alec arched his brow. “In the club just next to Pandemonium,” carried Magnus on. “We all thought it would be fun if we came here after a while,” said Magnus and Alec his brow. 

“You knew about this?”

“Well. Yeah,” said Magnus. “Ragnor isn’t good at keeping secrets, I managed to figure out what they were up to pretty much immediately,” said Magnus. “But they’ve already booked the place and we decided to mix things up a little bit,” said Magnus. “I was of the same opinion, we should be all celebrating together,” he said and Alec smiled back at his fiance, kissing him again and Magnus chuckled softly. “Jace asked me for a favour since I’ve already figured everything out and I was more than happy to play along. It’s always amazing to see you blushing,” said Magnus and Alec started laughing, wrapping his arms around Magnus’ waist.

“And here I thought that Jace did something stupid. I must thank him,” said Alec and Magnus nodded. “But it’s not a custom, is it? For us to have our bachelor parties together, no? I mean it-”

“Screw the norms, Alexander, we make our own rules,” said Magnus and Alec had to agree. “Now,” said Magnus and stood up, fixing up his suspenders and he rubbed his palms together. “Are you ready for your surprise?” asked Magnus and Alec nodded.

“Have mercy on me,” said Alec and Magnus chuckled softly.

* * *

“Thank you everyone,” said Magnus as he looked around the place and all of his friends and family smiled, nodding. It was such an amazing party; Magnus was again dressed in his regular clothes - much to Alexander’s protests - and the two of them had returned back to the others after their little private session. Magnus had given Alec the dance of his life and after this was all going to be over, Alec was going to show Magnus just how much he liked that little present. It was amazing and Alec was going to be thanking Jace for a very long time - this was the best bachelor party ever. “This was amazing, truly,” said Magnus happily and the others smiled.

“Yeah, Jace, you did a good job,” said Alec and then winked.

“Ever doubted me?” asked Jace and Alec hummed.

“Well the way you kidnapped me to get me here and the sketchy behavior before when you were trying to get me to the back room,” started Alec and Jace fondly rolled his eyes, laughing softly and Alec bit his lip. “No, it’s perfect; everything is amazing. Thank you all for being here. All of you mean the world to us and it’s truly… thank you for everything,” said Alec and the others smiled.

“Well, the two of you brought all of us together,” said Catarina and Magnus smiled.

“To Alec and Magnus,” said Ragnor and the other repeated his words. Magnus and Alec glanced at each other and then clinked their glasses together, Magnus grinning and he nodded.

“To us,” said Magnus and Alec couldn’t stop smiling.

“To us,” said Alec and then kissed Magnus.


	42. Chapter 42

Magnus arched his back and threw his head back when he felt the pleasure building up, feeling Alexander’s arms around him, holding him in place as he was slowly coming back to Earth, shaking all over, his legs feeling kind of numb, but in good way and he laughed breathlessly as he glanced down onto Alec’s face. His eyes were looking up at Magnus, his cheeks red and his forehead was damp with sweat, his hair stuck to it and Magnus giggled as he gently skimmed his fingers over Alec’s forehead, pushing some of the hair away and Alec cutely smiled up at him, his arms still holding Magnus in place and the other just leaned down, planting a kiss upon Alec’s lips as he leaned down and he took in a deep breath.

Oh, this was amazing and just what he needed, slowly climbing off of Alec, who was still watching him carefully and Magnus just laid down next to his fiance and just hummed in delight. He was tired, yes, but in the most amazing way that there was and he slowly lifted his head up when he felt Alexander’s gaze on him. “You okay?” asked Alec softly and he turned onto his side, gently cupping Magnus’ face, who nuzzled into the touch and pulled up the bedcovers, taking in a deep breath.

“Oh, Alexander, I’m more than okay,” said Magnus, giving him a little wink and he curled up next to Alec, who wrapped his arms around him and Magnus was happily nestled in the warm and gentle embrace of Alec’s - it was his favourite place to be at; his sacred haven and he just cutely pouted and then looked up at Alec. “We need a shower,” whined Magnus and Alec nodded. “Too lazy,” said Magnus and Alec gave him a little kiss upon his forehead and he had to agree; he felt too lazy to leave the bed for now too and he just took in a deep breath and then shrugged.

“Yeah, I agree,” said Alec and Magnus’ corners curled up, forming a little smile. Alec then glanced up at the ceiling for a little while and he hummed when he remembered the question that Jace has been asking him for a while now - it was wedding related, again, of course. That was all that they talked about lately, but then again, Alec didn’t mind it.  _ He loved discussing his and Magnus’ wedding, it was so much fun.  _ But Jace asked him where he and Magnus were going to be heading off for the honeymoon and Alec honestly didn’t know. He had a place in mind, but he didn’t know what Magnus was going to think of his choice of it. Magnus would probably want to go somewhere out of the country, somewhere where it was a beach! Probably. Alec didn’t know and he just bit his lip a little bit.

“Yes?” asked Magnus and giggled because he could tell that there was something on Alec’s mind, his fingers still playing with Alexander’s hair and Alec just chuckled because Magnus was adorable. He loved their little moments like this - cuddling next to each other and just talking with each other.

“Hmm?”

“I can tell that you’re thinking about something,” said Magnus and Alec smiled and then nodded. Magnus could always read him like an open book; Alec admired that about him.

“Well,” said Alec and Magnus perked up, supporting himself on his elbow and he was now hovered on top of Alec again - kind of. Alec then puffed his cheeks and then just decided to bring it up. “With all of the wedding planning going on,” said Alec and Magnus gave him a little nod. “I mean pretty much everything is planned into details. Everything  _ but _ our honeymoon,” said Alec. Ah, yes, their honeymoon, Magnus was thinking about it for a little while as well.

“Yeah?” asked Magnus softly. In the past he had this picture of the perfect honeymoon - going to a magical place, where it was always sunny, where there were beautiful beaches and amazing ocean. That was the first plan that he had in mind, but now he came to the realisation that it didn’t really matter where their honeymoon would take place at. As long as the two of them were together, then it would be amazing, Magnus was sure of it. Also, Magnus didn’t want to go to just  _ any _ place, he wanted the place that they would be visiting to have some sort of a sentimental value to both of them. 

“Well, I don’t know,” said Alec and bit his lip. There was a place that he wanted to visit, but he didn’t know what Magnus would think of it. It was probably kind of silly… it was silly, but it meant a lot to Alec and he made another pause. “Did you have a place… city or a country that you wanted to visit?” asked Alec and Magnus gave him a little chuckle. Ah, yes, this was so very Alexander - allowing him to pick the place. Alec always put him first and Magnus loved that, but Magnus wanted Alec to pick out the place they would be visiting.

“I have a couple of places on my mind,” said Magnus and Alec perked up, getting excited already. “But I also have a feeling that there’s a place that you wanna visit, huh?” asked Magnus and Alec flushed just a little bit.

“You always know what’s on my mind,” said Alec and laughed.

“Well, you are an open book to read for me,” said Magnus and was ready to listen. “Look,” said Magnus. “To me it doesn’t really matter where we visit, I want it to be just… I know it’ll be amazing if it’s us just spending time together and you’ve done so much for me already so,” said Magnus and Alec grinned a little bit. “Tell me, where do you wanna go? There aren’t any limits, we can go anywhere you want,“ said Magnus.

“Anywhere, you sure?”

“Yes,” said Magnus and then cocked his head to the side. Alec seemed almost hesitant to tell him the destination - why? Magnus frowned a little bit. “Aw, do tell me, you don’t need to look so nervous,” said Magnus and Alec shook his head. Oh, it wasn’t like this, he just hoped that it wasn’t a bad idea, that was all!

“Not nervous,” promised Alec and pressed a kiss upon Magnus’ lips. “I’m just… well, the place that I had in mind isn’t really,” said Alec and then shrugged. “I mean it is special to me, it’s beyond special to me,” said Alec and Magnus gave him a smile. Well, then it was beyond special to Magnus too, he didn’t understand why Alexander was making such a big deal out of it. Again, he told him that destination didn’t really matter to him. “It’s just not very glamorous at all,” said Alec and Magnus was listening, giving him a little nod.

“Yeah?” asked Magnus and wondered if the two of them had the same place in mind. Magnus was also thinking of a place that he wanted to visit and it wasn’t glamorous at all. It wasn’t even abroad, it was just… oh, this would be amazing if they had the same place in mind! It would just prove that they were really soulmates - not that Magnus needed more proofs, but still!

“I don’t know, I kind of figured you wanna go somewhere abroad and.... you seem like beaches and ocean type of guy,” said Alec and Magnus snorted.

“I mean I am, but actually I also thought of another place where we could go - and it’s no beaches and no ocean,” said Magnus and Alec’s eyes widened a little bit because now he also wondered if they thought of the same place!

“Yeah?” asked Alec and a smile tugged at his lips and he then just decided to come out and say it - he felt a lot better knowing that Magnus was thinking into the same direction. “Well, the place I had in mind,” he said and Magnus gave him a little smile of encouragement. “You know our first trip that we went on? You were planning the wedding and we were pretending that we were boyfriends to trick Camille?” asked Alec and Magnus started laughing.

“Are you really asking me if I remember the trip where I fell in love with you, you dummy?” asked Magnus and Alec’s cheeks flushed.  _ Oh, Magnus fell in love with him there?  _ Well, of course it made sense because Alec also fell in love with Magnus there and Magnus’ cheeks hurt from smiling too much. He had the same place in mind as well. It was a little town, but it meant a lot to him and it was just… so special. 

Magnus wanted to return there for a while now, with Alexander of course. To stay in the exact same hotel, to walk around the town exactly the same way as they did all the way back when and it was just…  _ Gosh.  _ It brought back so many memories! “Y-yeah,” finally said Alec and then chewed on his lips. “It’s… where I fell in love with you too, that’s why I thought that going on honeymoon there would be amazing,” said Alec and smiled sheepishly. Magnus held his face and kissed him again. 

“I had the same place in mind,” said Magnus and Alec cheered up. “Been meaning to ask you for a while now if you wanna visit again,” said Magnus and Alec grinned. “It’s a special town, no fancy beach can compare to it really, not when it has so much meaning to me,” he said and Alec nodded.

“I can’t wait,” said Alec and Magnus’ smile grew. “I really do miss that place, we had a lot of fun there,” said Alec and Magnus nodded and then laid back down, placing his head on top of Alec’s chest and he happily smiled as he listened to the other’s heartbeat and his own filled with joy. Alec glanced down upon Magnus’ face and he gently ran his fingers through Magnus’ hair, who happily hummed. Was he purring? “Aw, you’re such a cat sometimes,” teased Alec, but he knew that Magnus loved cats so he was going to take it as a compliment.

“Mm-hmm,” said Magnus and looked up. “Cats are superior beings after all,” he said, giving him a little wink and Alec just rolled his eyes, but in a very fond way and he kissed the tip of Magnus’ nose, Magnus cutely wrinkling his nose as Alec’s kiss was very, very wet and Alec started laughing. 

“Aw, you are superior of them all, Magnus,” said Alec and Magnus was just cracking up and he just nuzzled into Alec’s chest and he planted a few kisses over it and he then just laid back down, enjoying the way Alec was still petting his head. He truly did feel like a cat at the time - laying down like that with Alexander was the best thing ever and he hummed out. “We got it all figured out then, huh?” asked Alec and reached out to hold Magnus’ hand, linking their fingers together and Magnus gave him a little smile and a nod.

“Yes,” said Magnus happily and then chuckled. “This is amazing, I can’t wait to finally call you my husband,” mumbled Magnus under his breath and Alec’s cheeks heated up a little bit and he nodded. Gosh, he couldn’t wait for that as well; it was going to be so amazing. 

“Mm-hmm,” said Alec. “Oh and about our last names?”

“What about them?” asked Magnus and then looked up.

“Well after we marry,” said Alec and smiled. Ah, yes, that! “I want to be Alexander Gideon Bane,” said Alec happily and waggled his eyebrows. “I think it has a nice ring to it,” said Alec and Magnus chuckled and then chewed on his lip.

“Aw, and here I was hoping that I’d get to be Magnus Lightwood,” said Magnus and Alec had to agree that that also had a nice ring to it.  _ Magnus Lightwood!  _ Oh, but it wasn’t fair, Alec also wanted Magnus’ last name! Yeah, it was kind of silly of Alec to think like that, but he wanted others to know that they were together.

“How about we join our last names?” asked Alec and Magnus glanced up again.

“Oh, that’s a good idea,” said Magnus quickly.

“Magnus Lightwood Bane,” said Alec and his heart swell with happiness because to him it was perfect. “Oh, Magnus I love it. Let’s do it like this, huh?” he carried on his little ramble and Magnus found it cute how much it meant to him. Honestly, it meant a lot to Magnus as well, but it was adorable how eager Alec was about the whole thing.

“Mmm, sounds perfect,” said Magnus. “Alexander Lightwood Bane,” said Magnus, then saying Alec’s future whole name and he nodded. “Perfection,” he said and Alec just nodded, sealing their agreement with another kiss. 

_ So it was all settled then! _


	43. Chapter 43

Magnus wasn’t in a very good mood that day and he should have been because planning with Ragnor went great that day. They agreed on most things, Alec and he picked out their wedding cake - everything was slowly coming together and Magnus knew that one single thing shouldn’t throw him off so much. He was happy, he was getting married to the man of his dreams and the reason for his bad mood wasn’t Alexander. It wasn’t the wedding, because all of it was just perfect. Nothing was connected to that, but it was just… he felt stupid because he knew that he shouldn’t get to him so much.  _ He had so much to look forward to, but a single post from Camille and he was in a bad mood again.  _ It wasn’t that Magnus was following her on any of the social media that she had, but some of his former friends that he was still following and was friends with commented under her post, which made the post appear on Magnus’ timeline as well and it was just… it made him about many things, truly. 

On the post Camille was standing up, holding onto her baby bump as he was wearing a pretty summer dress and Magnus just shook his head. She was announcing her pregnancy to the world and in a way, Magnus was happy for her.  _ Yes, he was happy for her.  _ He didn’t know how he got to that point, but he was glad that she was kind of just… living her life, she appeared happy even though if she was nothing but horrible to him. It wasn’t the fact that Camille was pregnant, that wasn’t what made him feel sad, but it made him think and the more that he thought about it, the more he was sure that he and Alexander never really had a talk about having children and it kind of made him feel… nervous. They moved in together, they were getting married, yet they didn’t discuss having kids together, which was kind of an important thing for their future, no?

Magnus was just sitting in the living room, looking at the screen of his phone and he quickly locked it, shaking his head as he was chewing on his lip. Yeah, he was worrying too much about  _ nothing _ essentially, but at the same time he knew that he had to bring it up. Magnus wanted to have children and even if Alec was amazing with kids and kids loved him, he didn’t know if Alec wanted to have children of his own. They didn’t really talk about it specifically.  _ Why didn’t they discuss this before they got engaged?  _ Magnus didn’t know, but he didn’t like feeling insecure again and he was just shaking his head because he knew that he was worrying too much. Probably.

But he couldn’t go through again what Camille put him through. Giving up having a family, kids of his own. It was just… they needed to talk about it  _ before _ getting married. That was for sure and Magnus couldn’t just bring it up so directly. He had to make sure, be delicate about it. He needed to make sure how Alexander felt about the whole thing and he knew that he was making more trouble for himself than he should have. Alexander probably wanted to have children of his own… no? Even if they didn’t talk about it, he was supportive of him way back when and he just-

“Ugh, this is so annoying,” said Magnus and shook his head. He didn’t like that he was still so self-conscious. No, self-conscious wasn’t really the right word to describe what he was feeling at the moment. He couldn’t find the right term, but he didn’t really like the feeling and he stood up, forcing himself to tear his thoughts away from those terrible things and he just rubbed the back of his neck and he smiled when Alec stepped inside of the living room and he stepped over to him. “All ready?” asked Magnus when he remembered that the two of them were going to be heading down to the mall to do a little bit of shopping and Alec gave him a little smile.

“Yep, I took a shower. Now we can finally go, I know that you’re probably sick and tired of waiting for me,” said Alec and Magnus just waved it off and he gave Alec a little kiss upon his cheek. They weren’t really shopping for anything in specific, but an idea popped into Magnus’ mind. It was probably very stupid, but he needed to make sure.  _ Why couldn’t he just pick out the easier way and just ask?  _ Magnus wished that he knew the answer for that question, but in the end he just took in a deep breath and rubbed his palms together.

“Aw, it’s okay,” said Magnus and took in a deep breath, grinning when he smelled sandalwood on Alexander and he snickered. “Ah, I see you’ve been using my shampoo again,” said Magnus and Alec nodded shamelessly.

“We live together - what’s yours is mine and what’s mine is yours, isn’t this how this goes?” asked Alec, already deciding on it and Magnus was just laughing softly. “Also it’s my favourite,” he confirmed and Magnus just ruffled his hair softly and planted a kiss upon his lips and then gave him a little wink.

“I just grab my car keys and we can be on our way,” said Magnus and Alec happily clasped his hands together.

_ Yay! _

Shopping with Magnus was always fun!

* * *

Alec didn’t know why, but Magnus seemed kind of distracted when the two of them were shopping. Usually Magnus was the one that was dragging Alec around the mall - so to speak - but roles were completely switched this time around and Alec was truly very confused because Magnus was the one that invited him to go shopping with him in the first place. Alec was trying to find a good button up shirt for himself and he was going to be needing Magnus’ opinion on it because he still trusted Magnus the most when it came to the way that he dressed. Magnus knew what he liked and Alec respected that a lot, but when he turned around, Magnus was nowhere to be seen and he narrowed his eyes.

“Magnus?” asked Alec and decided to carry the shirt with him as he was going to see where Magnus wandered off to. Magnus did that a lot - when he saw something that he liked, he kind of tuned everything out (even Alec at times) and Alec found it adorable, but this time it was different. There was something on Magnus’ mind, Alec could feel it and he narrowed his eyes, scanning the place. But it was going to be hard to find Magnus because the store was huge and he was going to make a few turns to find his fiance. Just where in the world did he go off to? Alec usually found Magnus at the  _ new collection _ line that the store would get, but he wasn’t there and Alec was puzzled. 

Magnus kind of wandered off when Alec was in the middle of trying to pick out the shirt that he liked the most and there was something that caught Magnus’ eye - he saw a young mother that was shopping with her daughter and Magnus kind of followed them over to the section where they had clothes for kids and his heart swell especially when he saw clothes for babies, placing his hand over his chest and he just bit his lip. Oh, he didn’t know what suddenly came over him. But seeing those pictures of Camille made him remember just how much he liked kids and he was just… for a moment he forgot, yes, but now the wish was stronger than ever and just seeing those made his heart swell up and he bit his lip. 

He couldn’t… he shouldn’t have… but still, he reached out with his hand and picked up the most adorable bodysuit for a baby girl - it was pink and had little flamingos drawn in the front and he bit his lip. It was adorable and he just glanced over to the other clothes and he sighed sadly. Yeah, he really needed to have that talk with Alexander, he needed to ask him and he just took in a deep breath because he knew that he needed to place the clothes down before Alexander was going to find him like this. Alec probably was searching for him, but Magnus just couldn’t tear his eyes away from the clothes and he eventually slowly placed the clothes back onto their place and he just huffed under his breath.

“Right, I better go back to Alec and.... oh, my Gosh, this is the cutest little sweater ever,” he said and stopped by the next set of clothes and he just couldn’t move. He knew that if he ever had a child, he was going to spoil them. He was going to buy them all the cutest clothes ever, they were going to be a fashionable baby and Magnus was chewing on his lip because the wish was getting more and more strong. It wasn’t really good for him and he knew it - it wasn’t the first time that he was there. Back when he was still with-

“Right, yes, moving on,” said Magnus.

Alec managed to find Magnus eventually and he was very surprised when he saw him looking over at the clothes for babies, narrowing his eyes and to him it didn’t really register, yet, what could have been on Magnus’ mind. He quickly stepped over to him and a smile spread over his lips because he was happy to find Magnus, he was beginning to wonder if he didn’t leave him behind. Chuckling at his own silly thoughts, Alec stepped behind Magnus and gently placed his hand upon Magnus’ shoulder, who turned around and gave him a little smile, quickly hiding what he was holding in his hands behind his back, but Alec could see the little sweater and he smiled. “Finally, here you are,” said Alec and Magnus had to force himself to speak up.

“Yeah, sorry, I kind of wandered off, like I tend to do,” said Magnus and then made a little pause. “Did you manage to find a shirt that you like?” asked Magnus and Alec nodded, proudly showing the navy blue shirt that he found among the others and Magnus’ eyes lit up. Oh, it was going to suit Alexander so well!

“What do you think?”

“You’ll be so handsome in that,” said Magnus and gave him a little wink, his heart hammering against his ribcage. What was Alexander going to think of him when he would see that he was clutching on those clothes so desperately? Magnus’ cheeks reddened and he quickly turned around. 

“Good,” said Alec and smiled. “What are you doing here, by the way?”

“Huh?!”

“Well, this is the section for kids,” said Alec and gave him a little chuckle. “Are you shopping for a friend?” asked Alec because he thought that maybe one of Magnus’ friends or co-workers recently had a baby and that was why Magnus was there and Magnus froze up a little bit and he just shook his head. “No?” asked Alec and then narrowed his eyes. He was very confused then, why was Magnus looking for baby clothes? And it kind of annoyed Magnus that Alec didn’t figure it out what was bothering him, but then again Alec couldn’t have known, he couldn’t read minds. 

“Doesn’t matter anymore,” said Magnus and then quickly turned around and put on a little smile, but Alec could tell that Magnus wasn’t in a good mood anymore and he bit his lip. Should he know what was the matter? Alec didn’t know what to say. “It’s not important and kind of stupid. Let’s just buy your shirt and go get something to eat, okay?” asked Magnus, sounding kind of down and Alec nodded, not wanting to make Magnus feel even worse about it and he just followed the other in silence over to the check out register. 

* * *

Magnus and Alec had just finished their meal, still spending time at the mall and Magnus was still feeling down. He was silent for most of the time and Alec finally decided to bring it up. He didn’t want to see his fiance down like this, it wasn’t fair. “You’re very quiet, you sure you’re okay, Magnus?” asked Alec carefully and Magnus looked over to the other side of the table and he just nodded.

“Yeah, I’m okay, Alexander,” said Magnus and Alec could tell that it was a lie.

“Now, Magnus, I know you’re lying, so just tell me, what’s the matter?” asked Alec softly and reached over the table to hold Magnus’ hand. Magnus didn’t withdraw his hand away from Alec, which made him relax a little bit. Magnus wasn’t angry at him, good. Biting into his lip, Alec held in his breath before he allowed himself to speak up again. “Something must had happened, even before we came over to the mall. Tell me?” asked Alec, trying again and Magnus hesitated for a little bit, but eventually he just…

“It’s… ugh, I don’t want to bring up a serious topic on a day that we’re supposed to be having fun. And it’s kind of dumb for me to be feeling like this over a picture I saw online. Like I said, it’s nothing. I’m just being stupid,” said Magnus, but Alec quickly shook his head because if it mattered to Magnus, then it wasn’t stupid. Not to Alec. What mattered to Magnus it mattered also to Alec and he linked their fingers together.

“What picture?”

“Ugh,” said Magnus and slowly pulled out his phone and hesitated again.

“It’s okay if you don’t-”

“No, it’s fine, I do, it’s just,” he said, his voice trailing off and he unlocked his phone, finding Camille’s post and he slowly turned his phone around and Alec’s eyes fell upon the picture and he then looked over at Magnus, who was chewing on his lip. “It’s not like that, I don’t-” he said and shook his head. “It’s not like I’m hurt because she’s pregnant, I’m over it. That part of past is over for good, it’s not that. But seeing that just made me remember how much I actually want to have kids someday,” said Magnus and Alec gave him a little nod.

“Yeah, I know,” said Alec and gave him a little smile. “You told me, what’s wrong?”

Magnus’ heart was kind of beating fast and he didn’t know how to say it. He didn’t even know what he was feeling. It wasn’t fear, but it was uneasiness in his heart that he didn’t really know how to put it into words. “I mean, we’ve never actually,” he started and Alec was patiently sitting there and listening to it all, but he was slowly starting to get the whole picture. Still, he wanted Magnus to say it.

“We’ve never actually what?”

“I mean,” said Magnus and then shook his head. “We moved in together, we’ve got engaged together, we made all this plans, but we never really,” he started and then made another pause. “I mean it was still too soon and for a moment I kind of forgot, but I just,” he said and then he stopped talking. Alec didn’t want to push him, but he knew what Magnus wanted to tell him. What he wanted to ask him. Still, he didn’t want to push Magnus too much. Magnus decided that he didn’t want to do that in the middle of the restaurant, so he just stood up and decided to pay for their meal. 

“Magnus?”

“I’ll, um, I’ll go pay for our meal,” mumbled Magnus and Alec rubbed the back of his neck. Well, if Magnus didn’t want to discuss it, but he still wanted to ease Magnus’ mind… an idea popped into Alec’s mind and he also was quick on his legs.

“Good, you go do that, I’ll go hit the restroom,” said Alec and Magnus managed to smile a little bit and Alec kissed his cheek before he stormed off to the… toilet? Magnus giggled; he sure was in a hurry!

* * *

Magnus was in a bit of a better mood after the two of them finally reached home and he was waiting for Alexander to come out of their room so that he could make the big reveal - how the shirt looked on him. Oh, Magnus didn’t get to see it on him because he wandered off to the side when Alec was trying it on, which was such a pity, but he was finally in for a treat and he just smiled, rubbing his palms together and he looked over to the side of the couch and he arched his brow because Alec left the bag from the store laying there and he laughed.

“Alexander, we put bags away,” hollered Magnus over to Alec, who was still changing clothes and Magnus then just laughed softly and decided to take care of the bag while Alec was changing in there. Magnus stood up and picked up the bag, turning it upside down by accident and suddenly something fell out from it and Magnus’ eyes widened when he saw that it was that exact baby sweater that he was clutching on in the store before Alec found him and his heart leaped into his heart.

What was the meaning of that?

Magnus was too scared to lean down and pick it up because he was just so shocked and he bit his lower lip and eventually he dared to pick it up and his heart swell again and he looked around. Alec was still nowhere to be found and he puffed his cheeks. Alexander got it, didn’t he? This was his response to him? This was him saying  _ yes _ to the question he was too afraid to ask and he laughed, feeling himself tear up just a little bit and he looked down at the sweater. Such a cute one it was. 

It was purple and white with flowers and glitter. Magnus was in love with it and he pressed it against his chest and he looked up again. There he saw Alec, finally, peeking from inside of their bedroom and Alec smiled. Magnus looked very emotional and also so very… touched. Happy. On the verge of tears, again. Alec really needed to make sure that he wouldn’t make Magnus cry again - even if they were tears of happiness. He didn’t like seeing Magnus cry and he gave him a little smile, slowly stepping out of the room and placed his hands together.

“What’s t-this?” asked Magnus, sniffling a little bit and Alec smiled. Magnus’ voice was shaking and Alec stepped closer.

“My answer to what you wanted to ask me,” said Alec softly and Magnus looked down again. “I do want to have children with you one day. I mean I know we haven’t explicitly discussed it, but did you really think that I didn’t-” started Alec, but then was reminded that Magnus still tended to get worked up over things and he just shook his head. 

Magnus teared up when Alec said that and he just walked over to him and leaned up, pressing the other down for a long kiss, Alec kissing him again and he wrapped his arms around him softly, gently kissing away the tears that fell upon Magnus’ handsome face and he just shook his head. “Don’t cry, come on,” said Alec and Magnus smiled and puffed his cheeks.

“I-it’s just,” said Magnus and then looked at Alec. “I love that shirt on you, it’s fantastic. I mean really wow, you look-”

“You’re blabbering,” said Alec and Magnus laughed.

“I know, I’m a mess. Emotional. I blame you,” said Magnus and Alec gave him a kiss upon his temple and then wrapped an arm around his shoulders. Magnus looked down at the sweater again and he shuddered. It was more than just a little sweater, it was a promise. It was just… “It’s so pretty,” said Magnus and Alec beamed.

“Indeed,” said Alec and chuckled.

“But what if we have a son?” suddenly said Magnus and Alec started laughing.

“And boys can’t wear pretty, sparkly and purple sweaters?” asked Alec and looked down at Magnus, who realised how it sounded when  _ he _ said it and he was laughing along with Alec. He didn’t mean it like that, he was just so- “Also we can have a son and a daughter. We can-” started talking Alec and Magnus’ eyes welled up again. Alec wanted to have more than one child with him. He wanted to tell him how much that meant to him, but instead he just kissed him again and wrapped his arms around Alec’s neck as he felt Alexander’s arms going around his waist.


	44. Chapter 44

Ragnor was walking up and down, trying to make sure that everything was going according to the plan. The wedding was in two days - Magnus and Alec were getting married in two days and the pressure was rising. He had everything under control, but at the same time, he was still panicking around because it was a huge responsibility for him. It was also a wish come true, but at the same time, he wanted everything to go perfect - he wanted to give Magnus and Alec their fairytale wedding and he had a lot of help, thank goodness. Alec’s siblings jumped in to help him out with some of the things and he truly appreciated it. He had planned quite a lot of weddings, but this was the most important one yet to date and he was just biting on his nails as he was trying to see if everything was coming in place. 

Ragnor turned around and he smiled when he saw Catarina and Isabelle working together on the little ribbons that were going to be tied around the chairs where the guests were going to be sitting on. Yeah, there were still a lot of details that Ragnor needed to take care of, rubbing his palms together. The flowers were going to be coming tomorrow and he was going to make sure that they were going to be displayed later tomorrow, rubbing the back of his neck as he tried to think if he was missing out on something and he then turned around, glancing over at the altar and he smiled. 

Oh, it was quite stunning. There were also going to be loads of flowers being placed down the aisle and Max was going to be the one that was going to be the ring bearer. Max was quite looking forward to it and Ragnor made a little mental memo to himself that he still needed to discuss a few of the details with the young man in person, taking in a deep breath. It was going to be amazing, they have done the rehearsal earlier that day and it was all going to be amazing.

Alec was going to be walked down the aisle with both of his parents as was Magnus going to be. It was a bit unusual, but at the same time, both of them wanted for both of their parents to be giving them away. It meant a lot of Magnus, Ragnor smiling because he couldn’t wait to hear Cintia sing for the reception later on. She was going to be singing when Alec and Magnus are going to be dancing for the very first time as a married couple. It was going to be very special and Ragnor then chewed on his lower lip as he looked towards the entrance and saw Magnus standing there, glancing around.

The curiosity got the best of Magnus and he went down to the chapel because he wanted to see how it was all coming together and Ragnor didn’t really mind it, walking over to him and Magnus rubbed his hands together. “I see you have everything under control,” said Magnus and Ragnor gave him a little smug smile, chuckling.

“Of course, did you really doubt me, old friend?” teased Ragnor and Magnus shook his head.

“Of course not,” said Magnus and huffed under his breath, looking around the whole place again and he felt his heart hammering against his ribcage because this was  _ his wedding _ after all and he was just so excited and nervous at the same time. But it was a good type of being nervous because the excitement was growing and he just… couldn’t wait for it to be the next day. He couldn’t wait to be finally called Alexander’s husband. It was just… it meant a lot to him and he looked towards Ragnor.

“I did a good job, didn’t I?” asked Ragnor and waggled his eyebrows. 

“Of course,” said Magnus and then clasped his hands together. “A part of it still feels kind of surreal, you know?” he asked after a few moments of silence. “I mean here I am getting married again. I didn’t think it would happen again, but here we are and I’m just,” he said and then chewed on his lip. “So happy, this time around it feels different. I have everyone that means the world to me around me,” he said and Ragnor gave him a little nod.

“I know, I’m so happy,” said Ragnor. “For you and Alec,” he said. “And yes, this time around it feels much better,” he said and Magnus chewed on his lip, giving him a little nod and he huffed under his breath. 

“Yes,” said Magnus and smiled. “I mean I still can’t believe that  _ everyone  _ will be here - my mom, dad, my sisters, Karen,” said Magnus and chewed on his lower lip. “None of this wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for Alexander. If he didn’t make that call to my father back then I don’t think that we would have this,” he said and rubbed the back of his neck. “Our relationship is slowly getting mended, we are getting closer again and my sister and I… well, it’s just so much fun to have them back in my life,” he said and Ragnor placed a hand on top of Magnus’ shoulder.

“I know,” said Ragnor. “You know if Alec wouldn’t have made that call, I had everything planned out - I would personally walk over to your father and give him a piece of my mind,” said Ragnor and Magnus smiled softly.

“He told me what you did for me though,” said Magnus.

“What?”

“The recital,” said Magnus and Ragnor chuckled. Ah, so he found out? “He told me that you recorded it all and then sent it to him, so in a way he did see him perform that evening,” said Magnus and gave Ragnor a soft smile. “You truly are an amazing friend,” said Magnus and Ragnor nodded, wearing a little smug smile on his face. 

“Like I said before - I’m the best,” said Ragnor and Magnus chewed on his lower lip. Ragnor saw that the other had something on his mind, but before he could ask him about it, Magnus stepped closer to him and gave him a hug. A long hug, wrapping his arms around Ragnor and he quickly hugged him back, Magnus quickly pulling away and he took in a deep breath. He kind of felt himself getting emotional.

“Thank you… for everything,” said Magnus and Ragnor winked.

“Don’t mention it, really,” said Ragnor. “You okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, everything is fine, just emotional… it’s getting to me, you know? All the love that I feel sometimes it just gets a bit much and I have to stop and take a little breath,” said Magnus and Ragnor started laughing, but he nodded. He was happy that Magnus was happy, that was all that mattered.

“As long as it’s tears of happiness, it’s fine by me,” said Ragnor and Magnus chuckled.

“I better be wearing waterproof makeup tomorrow,” joked Magnus and Ragnor laughed again.

* * *

“Okay, so how was that?” asked Alec as he just recited the wedding vows that he had written for Magnus to Marcel and Underhill and both of them were just sitting there, their mouths wide open and Alec rubbed the back of his neck. They weren’t saying much and he didn’t know if that was a good or a bad thing, biting into his lip and he then looked over at them again. “Um, guys? I would really appreciate some feedback you know. You need to tell me that it’s good, I spent the whole week writing this. I wanted to make sure that it’s perfect,” said Alec. “The silence - that can’t be a good sign, can it?” asked Alec and the other two glanced at each other.

Marcel was the first one that spoke up and he placed a hand over his chest. “Alec, that was so good, I mean that was just,” he started speaking, switching between French and English as he was that excited about the wedding vows and Alec finally allowed himself to relax a little bit. Phew, he thought that the silence was a sign of the two of them not liking the wedding vows and Underhill quickly nodded.

“You wrote all of that on your own, boss?” asked Underhill, who was surprised to hear how poetic the wedding vows truly were. Underhill knew Alec pretty well, but he didn’t know that his friend was so good at poetry, because that was this was. It was truly a piece of art and Alec nodded.

“Yeah, it’s all me. I mean, it’s-”

“I didn’t know you were so good in poetry, woah!” said Underhill and Alec felt his cheeks heating up a little bit and he then snickered. Oh, so that's why the silence was so long before? It was so good? Alec found it kind of hard to believe, but it did make him smile and he just chewed on his lip. 

“Yeah?” asked Alec and then happily smiled. “Oh, thank God, I was so nervous. Both of you were suddenly very silent and I thought that it totally sucked or something like that,” said Alec and then bit his lip and looked at Marcel.

“It’s the most beautiful poem I’ve ever heard,” said Marcel when he finally switched back to English and Underhill was laughing because the excitable side of Marcel was adorable and he wrapped an arm around his boyfriend and he pulled him a bit closer. “Teddy, when we’re getting married you better write something so sweet, you know?” asked Marcel suddenly and Underhill froze up a little bit.

They were getting married? When?

“Babe, we’re getting married?” asked Underhill suddenly and Marcel pouted cutely.

“Well, I am waiting and waiting for the day to finally come,” said Marcel. “For you to finally ask my hand in marriage,” he said, sighing and Alec was cackling over there at the side. “That day still didn’t come, poor me,” he said and eyed Underhill.

“You know,” said Underhill and Marcel arched a brow. “I was waiting for you to propose,” said Underhill as a defense and Marcel went  _ aww.  _

“Teddy, you were?!” asked Marcel happily and he clasped his hands together. “Oh, this is so… I will need a plan. Something romantic, I will make us a romantic dinner - you know how much I love cooking,” he carried on. “Something nice, something that is your favourite… maybe some ravioli or… Oh, oh, I know,” said Marcel, but then a finger upon his lips made him finally quiet down and he glanced over to his boyfriend, who was laughing, but the finger was still upon his lips and he pouted cutely. “What?” asked Marcel.

“Well, don’t you think you should keep this as a surprise from me?” asked Underhill.

“Oh, you know I’m crap at keeping secrets. Excitement gets the best of me and I can never keep my mouth shut,” said Marcel and Alec was cracking up next to the two of them.

“Well, still,” said Underhill. “This is Alec’s and Magnus’ wedding, we shouldn’t make it about ourselves, right? It’s their special day and-”

“Oh, please, do make it about something else,” said Alec and Underhill glanced at him. “Don’t get me wrong - I love wedding planning and I can’t finally wait for the big day to arrive. I love all of the attention, but at the same time it’s kind of… all I’ve talked about during the last few days was about me and Magnus. I love talking about Magnus - I can never stop - but talking about myself? Oh, I’m kind of getting sick of it so please make it about something else than  _ me _ ,” said Alec and Underhill snorted because he could relate to some degree.

“You sure?” asked Underhill.

“And then I will make us something sweet. I will hide the ring inside of something. You know how it comes represented in the movies? Yes, just like that. It’ll be romantic and just…” carried on Marcel and Underhill just shook his head -  _ adorable.  _ Alec was just holding back his laughter as he listened to Marcel’s plans and he just happily sighed as he looked down to his own hand and saw his engagement ring.

Soon, there was going to be another kind of a ring on his finger. 

Wedding ring.

Gosh, just one more day and he and Magnus were getting married.

Fuck, yes!

* * *

“So tired,” whined Magnus as he plopped down onto the couch next to Alec and Alec just nodded and wrapped his arms around the other and he pulled him in for a hug. It was a long day - the last week was completely hectic and even though it was fun, it was also very tiring and Alec was just happy to be reunited with his fiance and he just placed a kiss upon his cheek and Magnus happily hummed. “How was your day?” asked Magnus and Alec hummed. They barely saw each other during the day with everything that was going on and Alec just hummed.

“Long, but fun. Yours?” asked Alec.

“About the same,” said Magnus and then took Alec’s hand into his own and linked their fingers together, Alec happily humming and he pressed another kiss, but landing it on top of Magnus’ lips and the other puckered, kissing the other back and they just placed their heads together.

“My legs hurt, I’ve been running all over New York today,” said Alec and Magnus chuckled and gave him a little look of sympathy.

“Aww, angel, I can completely understand how you feel right now because mine hurt as well and I’m just… not standing up today anymore. Nope, this is where I end,” said Magnus, his body shaking from laughter and Alec just bit his lip. “So worth it, in a day we will be getting married,” said Magnus and Alec nodded, taking in a deep breath as he lingered on that thought for a bit longer.

“I can’t wait. Fuck, to think that we’re getting married. I so can’t wait,” said Alec and then smiled. “I’ll be waiting for you at the altar and then you will step in and I will probably faint when I will see you,” said Alec and Magnus chuckled. “You will be in a tux, right? I mean you know how I feel about you and tuxes. I cannot wait to see you in it. It will be so yummy, I can just see it and-”

“And your head is in the gutter again,” commented Magnus and couldn’t fight back another smile.

“Oh, fuck yes,” said Alec. “Look it’s not my fault. You look too good in a tux. Should be illegal,” said Alec and Magnus just shook his head. “My eyes will be blessed. We need to take a lot of wedding photos,” said Alec and nodded to himself again. “I will need them for science,” he said.

“Oh, you’re such a giant dork, Alexander,” said Magnus, laughing along and he just curled up next to Alec, “I did pick out a tux that I know you will like though, yes,” said Magnus and then winked. Alec whined because this wasn’t fair - Magnus teasing him like this when he couldn’t see what his tux looked like. 

“Can’t you just tell me what kind of colour or-”

“Spoilers,” said Magnus with a wink and Alec groaned.

“Spoil me then, I don’t care,” said Alec and then just pouted because he knew that he wasn’t getting anywhere with that. Magnus kissed that pout away and Alec was right back in a good mood because how could he be in a bad mood when he was getting married to his soulmate? It was impossible.

“Will be worth it, I promise,” said Magnus with a wink.

“With you it always is… it always is,” said Alec and Magnus grinned and placed a kiss upon the tip of his nose and Alec cutely wrinkled his nose, but then went in for another kiss.

Just one more day and they were getting married!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Our boys are getting married, kyaaa! In just one day, their special day is coming :) I am so happy for them <3 They came so far!!!
> 
> I also feel like it's good to mention that the fic is slowly coming to an end. Maybe a chapter or two more, I honestly don't know, but maybe their wedding day would be a good point to end the fic. They kind of started off at a wedding and coming back full closure by ending it on their wedding day :) However, I don't wanna let go of this AU yet. Just thinking about letting go for real makes me want to cry, lol (yeah, it came to this point, seriously), so I'm thinking of writing a sequel. Would that be a good idea? <3
> 
> Also I wanna thank you all so much for showing so much support and love to this story, truly means so much xxo <3


	45. Chapter 45

Standing in front of the door, Alec took in a deep breath. It was his wedding day,  _ it was his and Magnus’ wedding and the ceremony was about to start at any second now and he was just standing there and trying to keep it together the very best way that he knew how to.  _ Alec didn’t see Magnus that day yet - since morning the two of them were separated and he couldn’t wait to finally see Magnus walking down the aisle. It was going to be amazing and he just hoped that he wasn’t going to pass out when he would see Magnus. From what he heard, his tux was gorgeous and Alec couldn’t wait to finally see it. But most of it all, he couldn’t wait to finally read his vows to Magnus. He spent a lot of time writing them and he was just…  _ ugh, so nervous, but in a very good way. _

Alec looked over at the side where his parents were standing and he smiled when he saw that Robert was the emotional one of the two and he just snorted, trying not to laugh too much. Catarina and Jace had already walked down the aisle, just like Max, who was their ring bearer and the one that was next was Alec, who was getting nervous, chewing on his lip and he then glanced towards his parents. Robert was tearing up, Maryse was trying her best to hold back her tears, but Alec could see it that she was also on the verge of bursting into tears and Alec jumped when he finally heard  _ Wedding March  _ playing in the background and he huffed under his breath.

“Finally, let’s do this. Mom, dad, let’s do this,” said Alec and Robert quickly swallowed back his tears, stepping onto the right side of Alec, while Maryse took Alec’s hand and gave him a little nod. Alec’s heart was hammering against his ribcage and as the door finally opened again and he stepped out, looking around the place and he smiled when he saw everyone that came. He walked past Izzy and Simon, who were holding hands and he smiled all the way up to his ears.

Izzy was on the verge of tears as well and Alec just huffed under his breath and focused on looking in front of him, looking over at the altar and he smiled because there were Catarina and Jace standing and waiting for both of them to finally come so that the ceremony could finally start. Well, it had already started, but all of them were waiting to get to the good part and Alec just laughed softly. Jace was standing proudly there, his smile bright and Alec gave him a smile back and sent him a little nod, Jace sending him a little nod back and before he knew it he already came to the end of the aisle. Ah, yes, what followed next was going to be hard and emotional, especially for Robert.

“My boy,” said Maryse and gently cupped Alec’s face, who smiled back at his mom and gave her a big hug, puffing his cheeks as Maryse just gave him a little smile and a gentle pinch against his cheek. He giggled and then looked at his father, who pulled him in for a big and long hug - just like he expected. His father was a mess when he was giving Izzy away and he was the same now. Alec thought that it would be different because at the end of the day Izzy was his little girl, but nope… Maryse had to be the one to remind him that he would need to end the hug sooner than later.

“Right, I’m sorry,” said Robert and then took in a deep breath, placing his hand on top of Alec’s shoulder and just gave him a little smile. “I’m so proud of you,” he said and Alec gave him a little nod and then chewed on his lip because he didn’t want to get emotional yet. Later it was okay, but if he gave into his emotions so soon then he could never go through reading his vows and he smiled as his father gently ruffled his hair.

“Watch the hair, dad,” said Alec and made everyone in the room laugh.

“Right,” said Robert and then finally followed his wife to their seats, Alec stepping up to the altar and his heart was starting to beat much faster because Magnus was soon going to be coming and he glanced around the entire room, grinning when he saw Magnus’ sisters just smiling and watching everything, his eyes falling upon Underhill and Marcel. As predicted, Marcel was already crying and Underhill was busy trying to soothe his emotional boyfriend. It made Alec wonder how the poor guy would survive his own wedding if he and Underhill were about to get married. 

Alec was quickly snapped back to reality when Magnus finally stepped inside of the room in the company of his parents and his heart leaped up to his throat because Magnus looked completely and utterly  _ stunning.  _ Yes, he was just so… Alec couldn’t even describe how stunning he looked. He was wearing a light golden tux, which was almost white, but it was just very… stunning. Alec loved the way Magnus looked in it and he was right - Magnus didn’t lie when he said that he wouldn’t be disappointed. But then again, he could never be disappointed. Magnus looked lovely no matter what and Alec just huffed under his breath and tried to be as calm as he possibly could - which wasn’t easy. At all.

Magnus was… shaking all over. It was just… marrying Alexander was completely different than his first wedding. He wanted to literally run down the aisle to be finally over there because the walk down the aisle just seemed to be dragging on forever and ever, but he was happy that he had his parents next to him. Cintia was happily holding onto Magnus’ hand, while Asmodeus was holding onto his other one and Magnus felt like a kid… yes, like a little boy. It made him smile. And there was a pretty boy waiting for him at the end of the aisle. 

Magnus took in a deep breath when it finally came for him to step over to Alexander and he looked over at his mother, who bit her lip. She had been crying, tears were rolling down her cheeks right there and then and Magnus chewed on his lip. “ _ Sayang _ , be happy,” whispered Cintia as she kissed Magnus’ forehead and then gave him a little smile before she finally managed to part from him, sniffling and Magnus sniffled as well. Unlike Alec, he was a mess for the entire day. He was very emotional, but he promised not to cry during the ceremony.  _ He wanted his makeup to look fly because he put a lot of work into it.  _ And Alec could tell - his eyes were sparkling.

But was that really make up or was it happiness?

Magnus turned over to his father, who gave him a hug and then gently tapped his shoulder. “Go get him tiger, huh,” said Asmodeus and Magnus could tell that his father wasn’t really used to attending weddings. He giggled back and then he hugged his father again.

“Thank you, papa,” said Magnus and heard his father gasp, giving him a little smile. He didn’t call Asmodeus  _ papa _ ever since he was a little kid, but he finally felt comfortable with calling him that again and he gave his father a little wink and then finally turned around and faced Alexander, who was just observing him and he slowly stepped up to him, looking over at Catarina, who was just smiling, her cheeks hurting from smiling so much. Ah, finally, it was happening and he took in a deep breath as he stopped by Alec and turned over to him and Alec was just-

“Wow,” heard Alec himself say, the music stopping and everyone in there could hear him, laughing and Alec just flushed a little bit, but he didn’t regret anything. He needed Magnus to know how good he looked and Magnus leaned a bit closer to him and then waggled his eyebrows. Alexander looked so lovely as well, waring that amazing dark navy tux and he was just in awe.

“Like what you see, darling?” flirted Magnus and Alec nodded.

“Very, yes, I mean woah, you weren’t kidding when you said that I… yep, I like it very much,” was Alec blabbering and Max, who was standing there over at the side was just shaking his head and face-palming himself. His brother was… well, he got it where he was coming from, but he could just… oh, it was hilarious and Max was just laughing with the others, while Alec was trying to get himself back into the zone and he just cleared his throat.

“I-I am so sorry,” said Alec and looked over at Jem. Magnus’ old friend, who volunteered himself to be the other that was going to be running the ceremony. He was there when Magnus was first getting married and he wished that he said how he felt about the woman that was getting married to his friend, but it seemed that it all worked out in the end. Magnus found someone that truly loved him and how could he possibly not be there for his friend? He flew into New York just to be with the two of them and it was all just… very special to Magnus.

Just like it was supposed to be.

“We can start now,” carried Alec on and Jem just grinned.

“It’s okay, we can wait, you two take all the time-”

“Stop stalling and marry us already,” teased Magnus and his friend gave him a little fond smile and then just nodded. Very well. And just like that the main portion of the ceremony was finally started, Alec feeling his emotions getting the best of him again as Magnus was looking up at him, staring into his eyes, holding onto his hand tightly. Magnus was so happy, he couldn’t believe that he could actually feel this amount of happiness, but it was true because everywhere that he looked around there were people that loved him.

His family was there, his friends were all there, supporting him and  _ Alexander…  _ oh, it was love overload and he just gripped onto Alec’s hands tighter, biting into his lip as he tried not to get his emotions get the best of him and he puffed his cheeks as he was looking up into Alexander’s face, who was smiling. Jem spoke up, making a little speech before they could finally get to the best bit and Alec’s heart was hammering when he was preparing to get ready to say his vows. He hoped that Magnus was going to love them!

“And now, it would be time for your vows,” said Jem and Magnus’ heart skipped a beat, nodding and Alec decided to go first because his heart felt as if it was about to burst from feeling too much anticipation.

“Can I go first?” asked Alec quickly and Magnus laughed.

“Of course, angel,” said Magnus, finding it adorable how invested Alec was into saying his vows first, but he wanted to hear what he prepared for him. Alec took in a deep breath and then felt a tap on his shoulder, looking around and he saw Jace there, trying to hand him the paper where he had his vows written. Alec knew them by heart, but he still handed the paper to Jace - in a case of emergency. Maybe he would get too emotional and tongue tied, but he felt perfectly fine.

“I won’t be needing it,” said Alec and winked.

“As expected,” said Jace and gave Alec a little wink. “Good luck,” said Jace and gave the other a little wink. Alec just nodded and finally turned back to Magnus, who was standing there in anticipation.

“Okay, ready?” asked Alec and Magnus just laughed.

“Of course,” he said and Alec licked across his lower lip, linking their fingers together and he nodded.

“Magnus, they say that love is a journey,” said Alec and not even a sentence in Magnus was already tearing up, nodding and he placed a hand upon his lips. There went all of those preparations of him not being emotional. Alec bit his lip, but he continued. “I promise I will never leave,” he said and Magnus nodded.  _ He knew that, Alexander would never leave.  _ “And when things get too heavy to carry, remember this moment with me,” he said, his breath shaking and he glanced down, before he looked up at Magnus again, cupping his face. “It’s like… one look at you and my whole life falls in place. Sometimes I still can’t believe it’s true,” he said, Magnus sniffling. 

“Oh, Alexander,” sniffled Magnus.

“I get to love you and it’s the best thing I’ll ever do and it’s a promise I’m making to you,” whispered Alec and Magnus felt new wave of tears rushing. “Whatever may come, your heart I will chose,” said Alec and placed his hand over Magnus’ heart and Magnus huffed under his breath. He was already a mess. “Because, Magnus, I’m yours… forever,” he said and Alec could hear more sniffling coming from the others in there. “Forever I do,” he said and thus finally finished his vows, Magnus softly crying next to him. Tears of happiness they were and Alec knew that.

Magnus didn’t know how Alec expected him to carry on with the wedding like that - he literally attacked him with feelings and he didn’t know how to handle it. Alec smiled and wrapped his arms around Magnus, looking around the room and he was shocked. There wasn’t a dry eye among the others in there and he rubbed the back of his neck. Were they okay?

“Magnus, your turn,” whispered Alec. Magnus laughed in between his tears and he glanced up.

“You attacked me, give me a moment,” said Magnus.

“Attacked?! I would never, I just told you how much I love you!”

“Exactly,” said Magnus and then gave him a little wink, wiping the tears away and Alec blinked a few times. Oh, did he like his vows then?! That made him happy and he was patiently waiting for Magnus to recover. In the end Magnus just nodded, took in a deep breath and tried to keep it together. He still wanted to say his own vows out loud, but it was hard. 

“Magnus, do you want to stop for a little while and-”

“No!” said Magnus and then shook his head, reaching up with his hand and he smiled as he gazed into Alexander’s eyes and he huffed under his breath. “I just love you so much, my love. I truly didn’t know how much my life would change in a span of a year,” said Magnus and chewed on his lip. “Loving you has changed me for the better,” said Magnus and Alec flushed up so cutely. “You taught me so many things. You’ve always been there for me,” he said and Alec nodded.

“As have you.”

“Mmm, yes,” said Magnus happily. “Thank you for loving me and… just being here, stepping into my life,” said Magnus and Alec happily grinned. Oh, he didn’t have to thank him for that! “You’re the love of my life and like you said - love is a journey,” he said and Alec chuckled. “And what a journey has it been.”

“And it’s only starting,” said Alec, waggling his eyebrows.

“Yes,” said Magnus and then grinned, and Jem cleared his throat, telling them that it was time for them to continue things and they couldn’t agree more, happily slipping the rings onto each others, while they were repeating after Jem, finally saying that  _ I do _ which made even Alec cry in the end as Jem pronounced them as married.

Finally, he was able to call Magnus  _ his  _ husband.

* * *

“Our first dance,” said Alec happily and Magnus looked up at him and nodded, just bringing his husband closer to him and he took in a deep breath. The whole day was just magical and he felt like he was walking on air. “I’ll try not to step all over your feet, but I apologise in advance if I end up stomping all over you. I’m trying my best though,” said Alec and Magnus just quieted him down with a kiss.

“Alexander, you’re a wonderful dancer,” said Magnus and Alec snorted. “Yes, you are,” said Magnus and then shook his head. “Also, does it really matter? It doesn’t, all that matters is that we are here and in love and  _ married, _ ” said Magnus and Alec smiled and nodded, pressing his forehead up against Magnus’. Yes, he had a point - that was all that it mattered and he finally stopped worrying about dancing.

“Look at us - married at last,” said Alec and Magnus snickered.

“Mm, I know,” he said, humming, placing his hands on top of Alexander’s shoulders and his eyes flickered over to his wedding ring. “Your wedding vows were amazing, you wrote them all on your own?”

“Yes.”

“You’re amazing,” said Magnus.

“Yours were more amazing, just so much feelings and love,” said Alec and Magnus just laughed and let out a surprised yelp when Alec suddenly spun them around and dipped him down, bringing him up again and he waggled his eyebrows. 

“What was that?!”

“I believe that it is what they call a dip,” said Alec and Magnus snickered.

“I know, but how and when did you learn this?” asked Magnus and Alec glanced over to Raphael and then he snickered.

“Raphael was horrified with my dancing enough to give me a few pointers I guess,” said Alec and Magnus looked over to his friend at the side and then grinned. Ah, yes. Well, he was grateful for that, that dip truly was something! “He says that he believes that there’s still potential in me.”

“You’re a dork,” said Magnus and just kissed Alec softly, before he wrapped his arms around him again and he took in a deep breath. “Kind of funny, don’t you think?”

“Hmm?”

“I mean we started off at a wedding and now - it’s our own,” said Magnus and Alec chuckled. “We came the full circle - so to speak,” said Magnus and Alec gave him a little nod.

“And now we start on a completely different chapter, together,” he said and Magnus happily hummed, closing his eyes as he continued moving to the rhythm of the song. Magnus smiled and he liked how that sounded - closing one chapter, but opening another one and he was just happily smiling as Alec spun them one more time.

_ From now on they were going to be always dancing together. _

All began from them believing that there weren’t any strings attached between the two of them, but the amount of strings that came to life between them was extraordinary. They were strong, deep and full of love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to apologise for any mistakes in the chapter, it was kind of hard to pay attention with all the tears in my eyes as I was writing :')  
> Alec's vows are lyrics of Ruelle's song of course and I think it kind of fits. I wrote the chapter while listening to the song on repeat so no wonder I was in tears for most of the part, lol.   
> I would just like to thank you to all of you for supporting my story and showing it so much love. It truly meant a lot to me, it was such an amazing journey <3


End file.
